UN'Vt-RS/TY 


OF 


THE   LIFE   OF 
DAVID   C.   BRODERICK 


THE  LIFE  OF 

DAVID  C.   BRODERICK 

A   SENATOR   OF   THE  FIFTIES 


BY 

JEREMIAH  LYNCH 

Author  of  "Egyptian  Sketches, "  "  Three  Years  in  the 
Klondike, "  etc. 


NEW  YORK 

THE  BAKER  &  TAYLOR  COMPANY 
1911 


COPYRIGHT,    1910 
BY    JEREMIAH    LYNCH 

COPYRIGHT,     1911 
BY    THE    BAKER    AND    TAYLOR    CO, 


THE-  PLIMPTON-  PRESS 

[  WD-  O] 
NORWOOD  •  MASS  •  U  •  S  •  A 


TO 

EDWARD    ROBESON   TAYLOR 

THIS    BOOK    IS    INSCRIBED    AS    A 

MODEST    TRIBUTE   TO 

FRIENDSHIP 


PKEFACE 

THE  destruction  of  San  Francisco  in  1906 
occasioned  the  loss  of  many  unique  and 
interesting  documents  relating  to  the  early  history 
of  California.  The  shock  of  the  fire  and  earth- 
quake caused  the  death  of  several  pioneers  who 
helped  to  make  that  history.  Moreover,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  author,  a  number  of  existing  books 
describing  events  occurring  in  the  fifties  are  both 
incomplete  and  inaccurate. 

Therefore,  this  work  is  a  modest  effort  to  supply 
these  deficiencies  before  it  is  too  late.  Many  liv- 
ing witnesses  of  incidents  related  have  been 
consulted  and  all  available  sources  of  original 
authorities  diligently  investigated.  The  names 
of  these  persons  and  authorities  will  be  found 
at  the  end  of  the  volume. 

Surely  the  deeds  and  memories  of  the  men  who 
founded  the  State  of  California  should  be  pre- 
served from  oblivion. 

JEREMIAH   LYNCH. 


PERSONS  WHO  HAVE  FURNISHED  WRITTEN 
STATEMENTS 

GENERAL  HABBY  WOBTHINGTON          COLONEL  W.  B.  SHAW 
ISAAC  R.  HITT  GEORGE  H.  ROGERS 

GENERAL  DANIEL  E.  SICKLES  GEORGE  T.  KNOX 

GENERAL  P.  C.  RUST  CHAS.  W.  KENDALL 

MRS.  JOHN  A.  LOGAN  JOHN  H.  WISE 

JOHN  DAGGETT 

PARTIAL  LIST  OF  OTHER  AUTHORITIES 

Men  and  Memories  San  Francisco  in  Spring  of  '50 

BARRY  AND  PATTEN 

Memoirs  of  Wm.  M.  Gwin 

Memoirs  of  Stephen  J.  Field 

Hittell's  History  of  California 

Bancroft's  History  of  the  Pacific  Coast 

The  Terry-Broderick  Duel,  JOHN  CURRET 

Representative  Men  of  the  Pacific  —  SHUCK 

GEORGE  WILLIAM  CURTIS,  1860 

GEORGE  WILKES,  1859 
New  York  Ab.  Papers,  1844  to  1849 

Alia  California,  1851  to  1859 
Mountains  and  Molehills,  MARRTATT 

Harper  Brothers,  New  York,  1855 

Three  Years  in  California,  COLTON,  New  York,  1850 

Annals  of  San  Francisco,  1854 

Life  of  Junipero  Serra 
Trial  of  D.  S.  Terry  by  Committee  of  Vigilance 

San  Francisco,  1856 
History  of  Vigilance  Committee 

San  Francisco,  1857 
Narrative  of  Edward  McGowan 

San  Francisco,  1857 
Early  Days  and  Men  in  California,  SWASET 

Broderick  and  Gwin,  O'MEARA 
Every  Paper  Published  in  San  Francisco  During  the  Week  of  the 

Duel  and  Death 
A  Complete  Transcript  of  Broderick' s  SENATORIAL  RECORD 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  NEW  YORK 3 

II.   EARLY  DAYS 15 

III.  IN  THE  SENATE  OF  CALIFORNIA   ...  50 

IV.  PROGRESS 63 

V.   CONFLICT 82 

VI.  THE  COMMITTEE  OF  VIGILANCE    ...  97 
VII.  TH±;    COMMITTEE    OF    VIGILANCE  —  con- 
tinued      118 

VIII.   SENATOR 141 

IX.  WASHINGTON 160 

X.  DISSENSION 186 

XI.  PROVOCATION 204 

XII.  THE  DUEL 218 

XIII.   CONCLUSION 232 

APPENDIX 243 

INDEX  .                                 261 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

DAVID  C.  BRODERICK Frontispiece 

FACING 
PAGE 

WILLIAM  M.  GWIN 6 

MISSION  AT  PALA 16 

MISSION  DOLORES,  SAN  FRANCISCO,  1856    .      .  28 

SAN  FRANCISCO,  1849 48 

SACRAMENTO,  1849 52 

SHASTA  CITY,  1855 64 

EXECUTION  OF  CASEY  AND  CORA 97 

FORT  VIGILANCE 113 

DAVID  S.  TERRY 130 

E.  D.  BAKER      .    -. 143 

A  LETTER  BY  BRODERICK 183 

Los  ANGELES,  1857 195 

SAN  FRANCISCO,  1859    .     .     .     ...     .     .  216 

HOUSE  IN  WHICH  BRODERICK  DIED   ..  228 


THE   LIFE    OF 
DAVID    C.   BRODERICK 


THE   LIFE   OF 
DAVID   0.  BRODERICK 

CHAPTER  I 

NEW    YORK 

T^VAVID  COLBRETH  BRODERICK  was  born 
*~*  on  February  4,  1820,  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington. Concerning  his  childhood  we  have  no 
record,  except  that  his  father  worked  upon  the 
Capitol  as  a  stone-cutter,  a  fact  of  which  the  son 
afterwards  made  dramatic  use.  Before  the  boy 
was  fourteen  years  old  the  family  had  removed 
to  New  York,  where  his  father  died  within  a  few 
years. 

Young  David  then  entered  upon  a  strenuous 
life.  The  fatherless  boy  found  little  saved  to 
support  his  mother  and  younger  brother.  He 
began  the  struggle  of  life  early  and  in  a  sombre 
way.  He  followed  his  father's  calling,  apprenti- 
cing himself  as  a  stone-cutter,  and  remained  with 
his  employer  faithfully  during  the  five  years  of 
his  indenture.  There  were  then  no  night  schools, 
and  the  boy  worked  all  day  and\  every  day  plying 
this  vocation,  with  the  winds  and  the  sunshine  as 
daily  companions.  He  grew  strong  and  reliant. 
He  had  few  boyhood  comrades  and  no  adventures. 

[3] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

In  fact  he  seems  never  to  have  been  a  boy.  From 
the  beginning  he  was  brooding  and  thoughtful. 

Christopher  Street  and  the  streets  near  by  were 
the  scenes  of  nightly  brawls  and  rivalries  between 
the  younger  men  who  lived  in  the  locality.  Bro- 
derick was  one  of  the  most  aggressive  and  trucu- 
lent. He  was  always  ready  for  a  fight,  and  whether 
he  whipped  or  was  whipped  (and  both  occurred 
many  times)  he  was  willing  and  undaunted  for 
the  next  fray. 

After  he  became  United  States  senator  a  few  of 
his  early  conquerors  foregathered  near  the  favor- 
ite resorts  and  told  again  and  again  "how  they 
had  licked  Dave." 

In  those  days  the  fire  engines  of  New  York  were 
handled  by  volunteer  firemen  whose  principal 
function  was  not  alone  to  fight  fires,  but  every- 
thing else,  especially  other  firemen.  To  the  head- 
ship of  one  of  these  engine  companies  Broderick 
fought  his  way,  and  he  became  foreman  of  No. 
34  when  he  was  only  twenty. 

With  this  position  as  a  lever  he  entered  into 
ward  politics  and  soon  made  himself  distinctive 
as  one  who  could  fight,  gain  and  keep  friends  and 
keep  promises. 

As  soon  as  he  was  of  age  he  was  appointed  to  a 
position  in  the  federal  service,  and,  as  has  been 
the  case  frequently  since,  perhaps  his  most  onerous 
duty  was  to  draw  the  salary.  He  certainly  found 

[4] 


New  York 

leisure  to  keep  his  engine  and  company  the  most 
complete  in  its  equipment  and  discipline  hi  the 
city,  to  attend  every  ward  meeting  of  his  party, 
where  frequently  there  were  blows  as  well  as 
words,  and  he  owned  a  saloon. 

After  all,  no  one's  career  is  as  one  could  wish. 
We  have  all  done  perforce  things  we  would  not 
have  done  willingly.  It  is  only  a  question  of  men- 
tal or  moral  vision  whether  one  trade  is  better  or 
worse  than  another.  Keeping  a  saloon  may  be 
a  misfortune,  but  it  cannot  be  a  crime.  Broderick 
kept  one  and  then  another,  the  second  finer  and 
larger  than  the  first.  Yet  he  never  drank  a  drop 
of  spirits  from  birth  to  death.  His  customers 
were  principally  firemen  and  local  politicians. 

His  mother  died  and  a  little  later  his  younger 
brother  was  killed  accidentally.  Broderick  was 
left  alone.  Years  afterwards  in  the  Senate  he 
said,  "I  do  not  know  a  single  human  being  in 
whom  flows  a  drop  of  my  blood."  His  ancestry 
was  Irish,  and  people  of  that  race  are  usually 
prolific,  but  the  man  seemed  doomed  to  be  alone 
—  lonely  through  life. 

Gradually  his  thorough  application  to  whatever 
he  essayed  won  him  friends,  adherents  and  stand- 
ing. He  became  the  representative  in  Tammany 
Hall  from  his  ward;  was  given  consideration  by 
his  political  superiors,  and  in  1846,  when  only 
twenty-six  years  old,  one  year  above  the  constitu- 

(5] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

tional  requirement,  was  made  the  regular  nominee 
of  the  Democratic  party  for  Congress.  But 
Broderick  had  the  faculty  of  making  more  bitter 
and  vindictive  enemies  than  most  men  that  one 
reads  of  in  modern  political  Me.  He  was  stub- 
born, positive,  unrelenting  and  unforgiving. 
While  not  quick  with  his  brain  and  tongue,  speak- 
ing indeed  rather  distinctly  and  deliberately,  his 
manner  was  repellent  to  those  he  did  not  like  and 
it  was  difficult  for  him  to  be  diplomatic. 

These  personal  characteristics,  so  well  recog- 
nized in  his  later  California  career,  were  part  of 
his  gloomy  being  and  were  apparent  even  in  New 
York  at  this  early  stage.  They  made  for  him 
friends  who  would  die  for  him  and  enemies  who 
would  make  him  die  if  possible. 

Broderick  was  the  regular  nominee  of  the 
Democratic  party,  which  was  largely  superior  hi 
numbers  to  the  Whigs  in  that  district;  but  an 
aristocratic  Democrat  ran  as  a  third  candidate, 
thus  dividing  the  Democratic  vote  and  electing 
the  Whig. 

At  that  era  a  revolt  from  the  party  organization 
was  rare;  people  were  not  so  reliant  and  free  from 
partisanship  as  they  are  today;  the  fetich  of  a 
name  was  worshipped,  and  so  the  gravity  of  this 
defection  from  Broderick  was  pronounced.  Per- 
haps an  anecdote  will  illustrate  his  character  and 
show  why  he  possessed  such  ruthless  adversaries. 

[61 


New  York 

President  Tyler  had  received  and  accepted  an 
invitation  to  visit  New  York  City.  A  committee 
of  city  officials,  accompanied  by  eminent  foreign 
guests,  embarked  on  a  steamer  to  meet  the  Presi- 
dent on  the  New  Jersey  shore.  Although  elected  as 
a  Whig,  Tyler  was  coquetting  with  the  Democrats, 
and  so  Tammany  Hall  also  selected  a  committee, 
or  rather  two  committees,  to  pay  respect  to  the 
President. 

One  committee  represented  the  ultra  aristo- 
cratic element  —  for  Tammany  was  then  respect- 
able —  and  the  other  was  also  a  Tammany  selec- 
tion, being  made  up  of  young  men  as  distinct  from 
the  old  men,  in  other  words,  the  classes  against 
the  masses.  Broderick  was  of  this  second  com- 
mittee, which  was  expected  to  gaze,  be  humble 
and  silent.  The  forty  sachems  —  twenty  and 
twenty  —  after  disembarking  from  their  steamer, 
walked  to  the  President's  residence  and,  while 
the  mighty  rich  were  awaiting  on  the  lawn  the 
President's  appearance,  Broderick  strode  to  the 
door  alone,  opened,  entered  and  presently  returned 
with  the  President  of  the  United  States  on  his 
arm.  Conducting  Tyler  to  the  astounded  group 
he  saluted  the  President,  and  then  said  in  the 
same  loud,  clear  tones  as  when  directing  his  fire 
laddies  at  a  conflagration:  "Now,  men,  form  a 
round  circle  and  the  President  will  talk  to  you." 
For  a  moment  no  one  moved,  so  completely 

[7] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

aghast  were  they,  until  one  of  the  immaculates 
said,  like  a  philosopher:  "Come,  gentlemen,  give 
attention  to  the  President,"  and  Tyler  delivered 
a  short  address.  But  even  then  Broderick  was 
not  done.  After  the  President  ceased  he  turned 
very  naturally  to  Broderick  as  the  leader,  and 
the  latter,  quietly  taking  the  President's  arm 
with  an  injunction  to  all  Knickerbockers  and 
firemen  to  "form  the  line  of  march,"  led  the  way 
to  the  landing,  whence  the  tardy  boat  containing 
the  real  city  committee,  with  its  music  and  platoons 
of  uniforms,  had  just  arrived. 

Broderick  was  hardly  persuaded  to  surrender 
his  prisoner  to  the  other  committee,  as  he  hoped 
to  take  him  in  the  Tammany  boat  to  New  York. 
He  had,  however,  the  grim  satisfaction  of  balking 
his  aristocratic  enemies.  Not  bad  for  a  young 
man  of  twenty-five!  But  it  cost  him  a  seat  in 
Congress. 

After  his  defeat  for  Congress  he  continued  his 
previous  occupation.  At  the  next  state  election 
the  Democrats  were  beaten,  which  made  his 
chance  of  success  dubious,  even  if  nominated  a 
second  time  for  Congress. 

Writing  of  these  days,  Gen.  Daniel  E.  Sickles 
says:  "Though  I  was  a  member  of  the  opposite 
party,  I  was  so  impressed  with  Broderick's  strong 
personality  and  with  his  prospect  of  splendid  use- 
fulness should  he  be  sent  to  Congress,  that  I 

[8] 


New  York 

worked  and  voted  for  him.  It  was  not  until  after 
the  election  was  over  that  he  knew  of  my  efforts 
in  his  behalf.  When  he  did  find  it  out  he  came  to 
me  and  thanked  me  for  my  support  and  pledged 
me  his  aid  if  I  should  ever  need  his  services.  He 
renewed  this  pledge  just  before  his  departure  for 
California.  I  remember  that  hi  his  gallant  way 
he  said  to  me :  '  If  you  ever  need  me  I  will  be  your 
slave.7  In  bidding  me  good-bye  he  told  me  that 
if  he  ever  returned  to  the  East  he  would  return 
as  a  United  States  senator  from  the  new  and  un- 
trammelled state  of  California.  This  he  did." 

It  should  be  remembered  that  when  Broderick 
expressed  this  resolve  there  was  no  state  of  Cali- 
fornia, nor  did  it  exist  until  nearly  two  years  later. 
But  probably  as  a  boy  hi  Washington  he  had 
accompanied  his  father  to  his  work  on  the  Capitol 
and  seen  the  United  States  Senate  in  session.  In 
unusual  children  such  sights  sometimes  influence 
their  lives. 

Then  came  tidings  from  far-away  California. 
Stevenson's  battalion  of  New  York  volunteers, 
who  arrived  in  the  enchanted  land  before  the  gold 
find,  sent  alluring  letters  to  their  friends.  Colonel 
Stevenson,  well  known  to  Broderick,  had  written: 
"Come,  leave  there,  and  try  this  new  land,  this 
El  Dorado." 

Around  him  were  friends  and  acquaintances 
disposing,  like  Alexander,  of  all  their  effects  and 

[9] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

thronging  every  steamer.  What  was  he  to  do? 
His  political  future  looked  blank.  The  life  he 
lived  and  his  daily  associations  were  repugnant. 
He  longed  for  a  broader  scope  and  a  higher  terrace 
on  which  to  crown  a  career.  Broderick  never 
sought  money.  His  characteristics  were  essen- 
tially governing  and  not  commercial.  Success  in 
one  is  difficult;  in  both,  still  more  so.  Therefore 
his  present  existence  was  doubly  distasteful. 

Yet  it  is  not  very  tranquillizing  to  desert  the 
old  life,  home  and  associates,  perhaps  forever,  and 
to  seek  a  new  land,  new  life.  Hesitancy  was  one 
of  his  missing  defects.  Yet  now  he  lingered  and 
lingered,  despite  his  characteristic  determination, 
which  ordinarily  made  it  easy  for  him  to  resolve 
and  execute.  At  length,  one  morning,  he  broached 
all  his  casks  in  the  street,  saying  that  he  never 
would  "sell,  nor  drink  liquor,  smoke  a  cigar  or 
play  a  card."  That  vow  he  kept  in  all  the  dissipa- 
tions, allurements  and  excitements  that  environed 
his  California  existence. 

He  left  New  York  on  a  steamer  and  debarked 
at  Chagres.  There  was  no  railway  in  1849,  and 
travellers  went  up  the  Chagres  River  by  boat  and 
thence  by  land  to  Panama.  It  was  a  wet,  dirty, 
hot,  unhealthy  journey  and  the  miseries  of  the 
crossing  have  never  been  adequately  portrayed. 

At  the  very  outset,  the  town  of  Chagres  itself 
was  a  dreadful  place.  On  the  thresholds  of  the 

[10] 


New  York 

doors  and  in  the  huts  were  thrown  hides,  bullocks' 
heads,  fish,  cattle  and  other  animals  putrefying  in 
the  damp,  tropical  atmosphere. 

No  one  remained  in  Chagres  more  than  one 
night,  except  at  the  risk  of  a  malignant  fever. 
The  next  day  and  the  next  and  again  a  third  were 
spent  poling  up  the  small,  narrow,  tortuous  stream, 
tormented  by  gnats  and  mosquitoes.  On  shore 
the  ants  came  for  their  loot. 

Cholera  and  yellow  fever  were  epidemic  on  the 
Isthmus,  especially  in  the  rainy  months.  It  is  on 
record  that  of  twelve  gold  seekers  arriving  at 
Chagres  from  an  English  port  only  one  appeared 
at  Panama  a  week  later.  The  eleven  others  died 
en  route  of  yellow  fever.  Fifty  thousand  adven- 
turous young  men  invaded  California  that  year 
and  a  moiety  toiled  through  the  dark,  fever- 
dripping  forests  and  up  the  miasmatic  stream. 
One  hundred  and  fifty  years  previous,  Morgan  and 
his  buccaneers  made  the  same  desperate  struggle 
and  for  the  same  guerdon  —  gold. 

We  have  not  nor  will  we  change.  Yet  these 
death-clinging  paths  lay  through  a  thick  jungle 
of  palms,  teaks  and  every  variety  of  rich  fern. 
After  rain  storms  the  refreshed  air  would  be 
mellow  with  a  sweet  fragrance  distilled  from  the 
thirsty  epiphytes.  Fortunately,  Panama  was  rela- 
tively healthy,  and  no  one  stayed  or  rested  between 
Chagres  and  Panama  except  those  who  still  rest  on. 

Fill 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Ships  clustered  at  Chagres  from  many  different 
seaports,  those  of  Britain,  France,  Italy,  New 
York,  New  Orleans,  Havana  and  other  places, 
and  on  the  Pacific  shores  Panama  was  the  point 
connected  by  steamers  with  the  Mecca  —  San 
Francisco.  Hence,  Panama  was  always  thronged 
and  crowded  and  vessels  at  this  early  period  were 
far  more  numerous  on  the  Pacific  than  on  the 
Atlantic. 

These  were  pleasant  days  for  the  old  Spanish 
town  and  wanderers  have  complacently  discoursed 
of  the  monkeys,  bananas,  cock-fights  and  bull- 
fights; of  the  old  cracking  walls  with  the  older 
brass  cannon  that  had  not  been  discharged  within 
the  memory  of  any  living  man;  of  the  quaint 
church  and  quainter  houses,  and  of  narrow  sun- 
shaded  avenues  where  the  mandolin  and  guitar 
accompanied  the  sloe-eyed  senoritas  warbling 
"La  Golondrina."  But  none  of  these  terrors  or 
pleasures  seem  to  have  disturbed  or  interested 
the  moody,  firm-faced  young  man  from  New 
York,  who  crossed  the  deadly  Isthmus  unscathed, 
speedily  leaving  Panama  and  coming  up  the  Coast 
without  mishap. 

On  a  fair  June  evening  in  1849,  the  Stella, 
rounding  the  southerly  rocky  point,  with  the 
northerly  bluffs  extending  far  to  the  westward, 
passed  through  the  Golden  Gate,  encompassed 
by  treeless,  grassless,  verdureless  hills,  and  ceased 

[121 


New  York 

from  her  long  voyage  in  the  placid  depths  of  San 
Francisco  harbor. 

On  the  far  eastern  horizon  a  range  of  mountains, 
separated  from  the  waters  by  a  wide  and  charming 
valley,  extended  for  miles  north  and  south.  The 
bay  itself,  one  of  the  three  safest  and  most  commo- 
dious havens  in  the  world,  stretched  for  leagues 
to  the  east,  north  and  south  and  from  the  west 
the  setting  sun's  rays  glided  through  the  straight 
and  narrow  entrance,  illuminating  with  mellow 
radiance  this  portal  of  the  Land  of  Gold.  Of 
the  multitudes  who  thronged  the  muddy  shores, 
restlessly  awaiting  the  arrival,  with  its  messages 
of  loves  and  tears  from  distant  kindred  and  friends, 
coming  o'er  the  world's  wide  compass,  were  some 
who  in  later  years  gathered  sweet  and  bitter  leaves 
from  life's  tree.  But  of  all  these  adventurous  Ar- 
gonauts there  was  none  whose  future  existence  and 
death  was  destined  to  be  more  tragic  and  pictur- 
esque than  that  of  this  newcomer,  who  with  sedate 
visage  looked  steadfastly  upon  the  panorama 
that  stretched  before  him  in  the  place  whither  he 
had  come  to  win  and  to  die. 

He  was  twenty-nine  years  old,  of  good  height 
and  weight,  with  superb  physique  and  strength. 
Few  men  could  cope  with  him  in  wrestling  and  he 
was  an  excellent  boxer.  His  ruddy  brown  beard 
covered  his  face,  and  his  hair,  slightly  dark,  was 
plentiful.  It  was  not  then  the  custom  to  wear  a 

[13] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

moustache.  The  Southern  statesmen  followed 
Clay  and  Jackson's  example,  and  like  the  Romans, 
went  with  shaven  faces;  but  the  Northerners 
wore  beards.  Even  then,  and  in  remote  Cali- 
fornia, the  differences  and  prejudices  between  the 
two  sections,  culminating  a  decade  afterwards  in 
the  Civil  War,  were  clearly  visible  in  their  personal 
appearance. 

Broderick's  large  mouth  was  filled  with  strong, 
white  teeth,  but  his  heavy  upper  lip  was  unpleasant 
and  his  countenance  was  sombre.  He  looked  like 
one  always  thinking;  one  of  those  men  whom 
Caesar  would  have  disliked.  His  steel-blue  eyes 
met  one,  not  glitteringly,  but  with  a  depth  and 
steadfastness  that  impressed  strongly. 

One  cannot  look  at  his  face  and  call  it  attractive, 
but  it  is  the  face  of  a  man  who  thinks,  resolves  and 
acts  without  taking  counsel.  One  can  understand 
that  it  was  difficult  to  disagree  with  him  hi  con- 
versation, he  was  so  positive,  not  to  say  dogmatic 
or  domineering.  He  had  come  resolved  to  sacrifice 
all  milder  pleasures  and  endearments  on  Ambition's 
altar. 


[14] 


CHAPTER  II 

EARLY    DAYS 

/CALIFORNIA,  the  richest  district,  with  the 
^^  most  salubrious  climate  in  the  New  World, 
existed  comparatively  unknown  until  the  last 
century.  This  isolation  of  California  was  due  to 
its  remote  location,  far  from  civilization,  on  the 
Pacific  Ocean. 

The  conquistadores  discovered  and  ravaged  the 
western  coast  of  the  southern  continent,  north 
to  the  tropics  —  including  Central  America. 
They  had  followers,  but  no  successors.  With 
Cortez  and  Pizarro  died  the  resolute,  desperate 
courage  and  enterprise  that  made  the  Spaniards 
who  conquered  these  territories  almost  Romans. 

Unquestionably  the  sad  end  of  the  two  marshals 
of  the  new  empire,  Cortez  and  Pizarro  —  the  one 
received  by  his  haughty  sovereign  with  alternate 
ignominy  and  distinction;  the  other  assassinated 
by  his  comrades  to  whom  he  gave  wealth,  victory 
and  power  —  was  poor  recompense  for  adding  a 
continent  to  the  Spanish  dominions. 

In  later  years  a  few  desultory  voyages  were 
undertaken  northerly  along  the  coast  and  several 
military  detachments  were  sent  to  the  western  and 
northern  interior. 

[15] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

But  no  glowing  legends  of  riches  rivalling  those 
of  Peru  or  of  Mexico  were  heard  and  transmitted 
by  these  explorers  on  sea  and  land.  A  vague 
rumor  of  " Seven  golden  cities"  that  existed  or  had 
existed  sometime  in  these  vast  untrodden  regions 
in  the  dim  past  floated  around  the  cloisters  of  the 
churches  and  in  the  barracks  of  the  soldiery,  and 
both  church  and  state  united  in  more  than  one 
effort  to  discover  these  fabled  treasures  of  an  un- 
known race.  All  that  was  found  were  some  chaotic 
ruins  that  still  exist  and  still  are  largely  unexplored. 
The  heat,  difficulty  of  access  and  dense  vegetation 
have  thus  far  saved  the  golden  cities  of  Cibola 
from  the  time-destroying  hands  of  the  archaeologist 
and  antiquarian. 

Those  ruins  existing  in  Lower  California,  distant 
from  the  ocean,  may  yet  yield  valuable  and  accu- 
rate data  respecting  the  earlier  centuries  of  human 
life  in  those  localities.  Moreover,  the  tale  told  to 
the  soldiers  of  these  expeditions  by  the  few  abo- 
rigines whom  they  met  was  not  hopeful  for  farther 
enterprise.  Here  were  immense  distances,  fearful 
hardships,  famine  and  thirst;  and,  at  the  end, 
shores  washed  by  a  foggy  sea  and  peopled  with  a 
few  naked  savages.  Hence  viceroys  and  bishops 
desisted  and,  for  many  decades,  this  beautiful 
Arcadia  lay  waiting. 

Later,  the  gentlemanly  buccaneer,  Drake,  laden 
with  treasure  from  Peru  en  route  to  the  Philip- 

[16] 


Early  Days 

pines,  drifted  up  the  coast  while  hunting  Spanish 
galleons.  He  careened  his  ships  to  clean  and 
repair  at  a  point  some  few  miles  north  of  the 
entrance  to  the  bay  of  San  Francisco.  He  thus 
passed  unknowingly  the  ingress  to  one  of  the  two 
or  three  great  havens  of  the  world.  The  waters 
where  he  disembarked  are  even  now  styled  Drake's 
Bay.  He  found  the  far  dwellers  of  this  remote 
region  dirty  and  affable.  They  lived  on  game 
and  fish  and  were  without  raiment,  although  the 
climate  with  its  misty  vapors  was  by  no  means 
tropical.  Penetrating  only  a  short  distance  into 
the  interior,  he  departed  as  soon  as  his  vessels 
were  repaired,  seeking  Spanish  plunder  on  the 
high  seas.  Doubtless  the  published  history  of 
his  voyage  was  soon  accessible  to  the  foreign 
conquerors  of  Peru  and  Mexico  and  served  still 
more  to  dissuade  them  from  uninviting  sacrifices. 
So  that  from  Drake,  1579,  to  Viscaino,  1603,  the 
charm  and  beauty  of  California  continued  to 
remain  secluded  and  unknown  to  an  inquiring, 
intelligent  world.  At  the  latter  date  Viscaino 
directed  the  course  of  his  little  flotilla  northerly 
by  the  coast  and  discovered  two  principal  ports  — 
San  Diego  and  Monterey. 

Like  Drake,  he  returned,  bringing  back  a  meagre 
tale  of  unpopulated  lands,  bleak  shores  and  dirty, 
poverty-stricken  aborigines.  Both  of  these  in- 
trepid and  skilful  mariners,  Drake  and  Viscaino, 

[17] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

seemed  somewhat  apprehensive  of  danger,  fearful 
of  leaving  their  vessels  and  travelling  inland. 
After  all,  they  were  sailors,  not  soldiers.  Viscaino 
continued  his  voyage  as  far  north  as  what  is  now 
British  Columbia,  but  everywhere  encountered 
the  same  lifelessness  and  inhospitality. 

Again  generations  passed  on.  The  Atlantic 
Coast  from  extreme  north  to  extreme  south, 
from  Labrador  to  the  Isthmus  and  from  the 
Isthmus  to  Patagonia,  was  mapped,  ploughed, 
tilled,  cultivated,  forests  felled,  lands  peopled, 
ships  built,  cities  constructed.  Still  the  fair 
province  of  California,  lying  across  the  seas  from 
the  oldest  continent,  where  the  Occident  fully 
confronts  the  Orient  over  the  wide,  placid  waters 
of  the  deep,  remained  still  unknown,  sleeping  and 
waiting.  An  hundred  and  seventy  years  more 
were  marshalled  with  the  dead.  Not  a  vessel 
grazed  her  sands.  Not  a  single  sailor  saw,  from 
the  swelling  surge,  the  lofty  mountain  range, 
curbing  the  waters  and  bridling  the  storms.  Not 
a  single  soldier  or  adventurous  frontiersman  trod 
her  flowered  glades  or  lofty  summits  crested  with 
snow.  In  her  beauty  and  lovely  youth,  until  the 
coming  of  the  padres,  she  remained  hidden  like 
a  nymph  in  the  garden  of  the  Hesperides.  A 
strange  wooing  this,  of  the  dainty,  lonely  maiden 
springing  like  Aphrodite  from  the  sea,  by  the 
shriven,  tonsured,  leather-girdled,  venerable  friars. 

[18] 


Early  Days 

The  Franciscans  were  the  Jesuits  of  the  New 
World,  for  the  latter  had  been  expelled.  Just  as 
devout,  self-sacrificing  and  persevering,  but  more 
humble  and  modest,  and  without  the  domineering 
demands  of  the  Jesuit  organization,  the  Franciscan 
friars  were  singularly  adapted  for  converting  and 
colonizing  the  equally  gentle  and  harmless  in- 
digenous population  of  California.  The  Francis- 
can, Junipero  Serra  —  a  native  of  Majorca,  but 
who  had  lived  his  life  in  Mexico  —  was  selected 
by  his  order  to  lead  the  ecclesiastical  members  of 
the  expedition. 

The  Viceroy  of  Mexico  assigned  them  a  guard 
of  fifty  soldiers.  It  was  also  provided  that  each 
priest  should  receive  four  hundred  dollars  a  year 
for  sustenance.  The  crown  and  the  cross  toiled 
together  under  the  flag  of  Spain.  The  single 
vessel,  sailing  from  San  Bias,  conveyed  two  hun- 
dred cattle.  These  animals  were  the  ancestors 
of  the  hundreds  of  thousands  that  a  few  years 
later  wandered  from  end  to  end  of  the  land,  for 
in  California  was  abundance  of  wild  game  —  deer, 
elks,  bears,  antelopes  —  but  neither  cattle  nor 
horses.  Serra  and  his  company  landed  at  San 
Diego  in  1769.  A  detachment  was  sent  northerly 
to  locate  the  port  of  Monterey,  the  second  of  the 
two  bays  discovered  and  described  by  Viscaino  in 
1603.  The  monks  and  soldiers  marched  on  foot, 
with  the  scant  supplies  loaded  on  horses. 

[191 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

In  some  mysterious  manner  they  passed,  unsee- 
ing, Monterey  Bay.  To  find  water  and  grass  the 
cavalcade  was  often  compelled  to  march  miles 
from  the  coast  with  perhaps  dry,  lofty  mountains 
intervening,  though,  of  course,  as  the  ocean  was 
the  guide,  they  feared  to  venture  too  far  from  its 
shores.  But  Portola",  the  commander  of  the  ex- 
pedition, pressed  on  seventy  miles  farther  north 
until,  with  his  soldiers,  he  discovered  the  superb 
bay  and  harbor  of  San  Francisco.  On  the  return 
journey,  which  was  difficult  and  dangerous  because 
of  the  scarcity  of  supplies  and  the  appearance  of 
scurvy  among  the  party,  he  sent  his  report  from 
San  Bias  to  the  viceroy. 

Serra,  who  had  remained  at  San  Diego  during 
Portola's  expedition,  at  once  commenced  the  erec- 
tion of  buildings  of  the  style  and  architecture  im- 
proved by  the  Moors  in  Northern  Africa,  taken  by 
the  Arabs  to  Spain  and  later,  with  slight  modifi- 
cations, transferred  to  the  New  World.  With  red 
roof  tiles,  mud,  and  rough,  sun-dried  bricks,  were 
made  solid  structures  of  one  or  two  stories  — 
admirable  dwellings  for  the  denizens  of  dry,  hot 
climates.  They  are  inexpensive  and  easy  to  re- 
pair, and  if  one  of  the  mission  buildings  is  only 
partially  destroyed  it  is  easy  to  construct  another. 
Water,  earth  and  sun  are  the  only  factors. 

During  the  next  decade  the  Franciscans  built 
several  missions,  distributed  from  San  Diego  to 

[20] 


Early  Days 

Sonoma.  Each  mission  had  a  moderate  though 
adequate  guard  of  from  four  to  ten  soldiers.  The 
friars  were  architects  of  the  earthly,  as  well  as  of 
the  heavenly  paradise,  for,  though  Serra  himself, 
with  proper  ceremonies,  laid  the  foundation  stone 
of  every  mission,  yet  he  resided  mainly  in  San 
Diego  and  the  friars  allocated  each  mission,  and 
aided  only  by  the  converted  Indians,  planned  and 
constructed  all  the  edifices.  It  was  not  all  food, 
peace  and  sunshine.  At  Paso  Robles  the  diet 
for  one  winter  was  acorns  with  green  herbs  for  a 
flavor. 

The  packet  boat  that  left  San  Bias  annually, 
with  supplies  for  the  immigrants,  missed  a  year  or 
two.  Monterey  Bay  had  not  yet  been  relocated. 
It  was  conjectured  that  sands  from  the  sea,  aided 
by  earthquakes,  which  even  then  were  frequent, 
unwelcome  and  terrifying  visitors,  had  destroyed 
its  existence,  and  what  else  might  not  happen! 
There  were  no  cattle,  nor  horses  save  the  small 
herds  transported  thither  by  the  Spaniards  them- 
selves. They  did  not  know  that  most  delicious 
wine  could  be  made  from  the  wild  grapes  abounding 
in  the  autumn  glens;  that  the  dry,  hard  soil, 
touched  by  the  magic  of  water,  would  rival  a 
world's  garden  and  supply  a  world's  granaries; 
that  the  wild  rugged  hills  with  their  steep  and 
picturesque  cones,  and  the  mountain  ranges, 
crevassed  by  deep-shadowed  glades,  concealed  hi 

[21] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

their  inmost  recesses  the  golden  ransom  of  a 
continent.  They  felt  themselves  exiles,  more 
remote  than  Juvenal  on  the  distant  islet  of  the 
Nile,  with  no  consolation  but  religion. 

While  Serra  was  temporarily  absent  from  San 
Diego,  Indians  attacked  the  mission,  slew  several 
soldiers  and  churchmen  and  completely  destroyed 
the  partially  finished  structures.  Padre  Junipero, 
when  told  of  the  catastrophe,  exclaimed:  "At  last 
our  ground  is  watered  by  the  blood  of  martyrs. 
Now  we  can  go  on  and  build  and  rebuild,  for  the 
land  is  consecrated  to  God.'7  He  hastened  to  re- 
turn to  San  Diego,  but  on  his  arrival  was  informed, 
to  his  chagrin,  that  the  viceroy  contemplated 
abandoning  San  Bias  as  a  seaport  for  California 
and  forwarding  supplies  overland  through  Sonora 
and  Lower  California,  a  distance  of  fifteen  hundred 
miles.  This  insured  practical  isolation  and  de- 
struction of  the  missions.  Serra,  who,  while  a 
profound  churchman,  was  also  a  man  of  energy, 
resolute  and  undaunted,  instantly  determined 
that  the  high  purpose  "to  whose  success  and 
enduring  existence  he  had  consecrated  his  earthly 
labors"  should  not  be  ignominiously  lost.  He 
started  directly  on  foot  with  only  one  Indian 
companion  for  the  palace  of  the  viceroy,  where 
he  arrived  after  a  most  fatiguing  and  hazardous 
journey  of  four  months  over  arid  deserts  and 
through  unknown  passes  and  defiles  hi  the  gaunt, 

[22] 


Early  Days 

barren  mountains,  without  pausing  to  rest  a 
single  day.  Fortunately,  for  such  endurance  and 
determination  deserves  better  than  failure,  the 
vacillating  viceroy  had  been  succeeded  by  another 
of  different  mould. 

The  intellectual  friar  completely  captivated  the 
new  viceroy  Bucareli  with  his  vivid  and  enthu- 
siastic description  of  the  ample  plains,  equable 
climate,  magnificent  mountains  of  California, 
and  the  incomparable  harbor  of  San  Francisco. 
The  new  viceroy,  enchanted  to  add  so  noble  a 
domain  to  the  realms  of  Spain,  directed  that  a 
large  vessel  should  be  properly  equipped  and 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  Serra,  who  loaded  it  at 
San  Bias  with  necessaries  for  the  new  colonies. 

The  viceroy  also  despatched  a  platoon  of  fifty 
soldiers  with  leather  cuirasses,  thus  distinguished 
from  the  lighter  armed  troops  of  the  Spanish 
army,  overland  to  San  Diego,  whence  they  were 
to  be  distributed  to  the  other  missions,  as  in- 
structed. The  old  friar  returned  resplendent  with 
joy  and  success  to  his  doubtful  and  despondent 
colleagues.  Such  was  the  energy  inspired  by  his 
presence,  both  in  converting  and  constructing,  that 
when  Father  Junipero  Serra  died  at  San  Carlos,  in 
1784,  only  fifteen  years  after  his  advent  to  Cali- 
fornia, he  left  sixteen  missions  and  ten  thousand 
Indian  neophytes. 

These  Indians  had  hitherto  professed  no  really 
[231 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

definite  religion.  Indubitably,  they  were  as  bestial 
and  degraded  as  the  lowest  of  American  aborigines, 
morally,  mentally  and  religiously.  Other  tribes 
possessed  some  faith;  the  Calif ornian  Indians  had 
none.  Marriage  was  a  prostituted  rite.  At  San 
Francisco  the  monks  found  an  Indian  married  to 
three  sisters  and  their  mother.  The  natives  fished 
and  hunted,  but  planted  nothing;  and  even  on  the 
seashore,  where  there  are  cold,  foggy  days,  and 
many  of  them,  wandered  without  covering. 

They  roamed  over  the  immense  territory  hi 
sparse  numbers,  killing  with  the  arrow  elks,  bears, 
deer,  ducks  and  antelopes.  Their  existence  was 
entirely  nomadic,  except  on  the  seashore,  where 
they  built  huts  of  reeds  and  twigs,  adjacent  to 
excellent  fishing  stations.  They  had  no  history, 
no  memories,  no  known  antecedents.  Unwarlike, 
docile  and  mentally  inert,  they  became  laborers 
and  Christians,  with  equal  readiness  and  alacrity. 
Faithful  to  the  padres,  they  were  warmly  attached 
to  their  local  missions  and  as  they  increased  hi 
numbers  became  correspondingly  useful  and  ser- 
viceable. 

Intelligence  was  not  one  of  their  attributes 
nor  could  they  be  educated  appreciably.  But  as 
horsemen,  ground  tillers  and  keepers  of  the  great 
herds  of  cattle,  horses  and  sheep  that  gradually 
accumulated  in  the  environs  of  the  numerous 
missions,  they  were  excellent  and  reliable. 

[241 


Early  Days 

Serra  saw  his  work  well  commenced  before  he 
died.  He  would  never  take  medicine  and  even 
with  a  lame  leg  walked  hundreds  of  leagues. 
When  remonstrated  with  by  a  muleteer  on  his 
carelessness,  he  said:  "  Well  then  give  me  the  same 
remedy  that  you  apply  to  the  sore  leg  of  a  mule, 
for  I  am  no  better."  He  preferred  sleeping  in 
the  open,  especially  when  travelling,  and  used  to 
say  that  it  prolonged  his  life  a  dozen  years  to  live 
thus.  He  always  preserved  both  the  independence 
of  the  Church  and  its  suzerainty  over  the  military, 
and  constituted  himself  chief  of  all  the  inhabitants 
of  California,  a  privilege  that  was  sometimes 
claimed,  but  never  exercised  by  his  successors. 
His  letters  show  courage,  devotion  and  a  remark- 
able intelligence. 

He  said  that  "  California  will  be  richer  and 
greater  than  Mexico"  and  evinced  no  desire  to 
depart  and  return  to  Spain  or  Mexico,  but  directed 
where  his  remains  should  lie;  and  at  San  Carlos 
he  reposes  in  tranquillity,  undisturbed  by  the  sea 
birds  that  forever  sail  above  and  around  his 
mausoleum  —  the  Founder  of  California. 

Like  some  dead  people's  fortunes  which  increase 
many  fold,  too  late  for  their  enjoyment,  the  mis- 
sions, after  the  demise  of  Serra,  advanced  amaz- 
ingly in  power  and  wealth. 

In  1824  the  numbers  of  cattle  and  other  farm 
animals  attached  to  the  twenty-three  missions 

[25] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

exceeded  a  million,  the  progeny  of  the  few  head 
taken  in  by  Serra  and  his  company  five  decades 
before.  The  native  wild  grape  had  been  pruned 
and  grafted  until  it  yielded  a  delicious  quality  of 
red  wine,  stronger  than  European  grades,  but  pleas- 
antly savored. 

Many  kinds  of  grain  were  grown  on  the  ranches 
near  the  missions  and  fruit  of  every  description 
abounded.  Wild  flowers  covered  the  glens  and 
glades;  copses  of  fir  and  birch  clung  to  the  sides 
and  summits  of  the  towering  mountains;  game  hi 
abundance  wandered  over  the  grassy  meadows,  and 
the  eternal  sunshine  of  California  —  gentler  and 
more  brilliant  than  that  of  either  Italy  or  Egypt 
—  cheered  and  chastened  the  missionaries.  Leav- 
ing far  distant  Spain,  to  cast  their  lot  with  the 
savages  of  this  remote  and  unknown  quarter  of 
the  globe,  they  had  found  an  Arcadia  without 
parallel. 

But  everything  good  may  become  bad:  nothing 
remains  changeless,  and  this  era  was  the  apogee 
of  the  friars'  peace  and  tranquillity. 

A  few  years  previously,  Mexico  had  become 
independent  of  Spain.  With  political  came  reli- 
gious independence,  and  the  rulers  of  the  new 
republic  heard  with  envy  of  the  monks'  prosperity 
in  California. 

Every  friar,  by  the  terms  of  the  compact  be- 
tween Bucareli  and  Serra,  should  have  received 

[26] 


Early  Days 

from  the  government  the  annual  stipend  of  four 
hundred  dollars;  but,  for  years,  nothing  had  been 
paid.  The  vessel,  sailing  every  twelve  months 
from  San  Bias  to  California,  was  laden  with 
supplies  ordered,  and  liquidated  on  arrival  by 
the  churchmen.  Indeed,  the  missionaries  could 
well  do  so.  From  the  sale  of  hides  alone  a  fund 
of  a  quarter  of  a  million  dollars  in  specie  had  been 
accumulated,  and  their  other  resources  have  been 
indicated.  Moreover,  all  the  Franciscan  friars 
in  California  were  of  Spanish  birth  and  the  newly 
enfranchised  Mexicans  did  not  wish  to  acknowledge 
allegiance  to  either  the  Spanish  throne  or  church. 
So  up  from  the  south  came  a  Mexican  governor, 
who  set  up  his  capital  at  Monterey.  While  in 
apparent  accord  with  the  Franciscans,  yet  he 
granted  them  few  privileges  and  treated  them 
with  rigor.  They,  in  a  measure,  claimed  the  whole 
country  by  right  of  discovery  and  settlement; 
but  the  Church  in  every  land  must,  like  everything 
else,  lie  under  the  law,  which  protects  both  those 
who  believe  and  those  who  doubt.  Hence,  the 
governor  repudiated  this  assumption  and  invited 
settlers  from  Mexico  and  other  countries,  making 
large  grants  of  land  to  the  most  potential  new- 
comers. This  encouraged  immigration,  and  the 
immigrants  enticed  Indians  from  the  missions  to 
enter  their  own  service. 

The  governors,  for  one  succeeded  another  with 
[27] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

almost  grotesque  rapidity,  were  only  consistent  in 
one  phase  officially,  and  that  was,  hostility  to 
the  friars  and  their  habitations.  In  1846,  when 
the  Americans  conquered  California,  the  missions 
were  even  then  decaying.  The  contrast  between 
1824  and  1846  was  pathetic,  but  otherwise  the 
Californians,  as  those  Spaniards  and  Mexicans 
who  dwelt  permanently  were  called,  continued  to 
thrive  and  prosper.  They  were  scattered  over  a 
distance  of  five  hundred  miles,  all  the  way  from 
San  Diego  to  Shasta,  and,  with  the  land,  animals 
and  Indians  filched  from  the  poor  padres,  lived 
like  veritable  hidalgos. 

Riding  like  centaurs,  on  horses  that  were  more 
enduring  than  the  purest  Arab,  they  would  sup  a 
hundred  miles  from  where  they  breakfasted  and 
never  leave  their  own  demesnes.  In  the  contest 
with  the  Americans  they  numbered  several  thou- 
sand fearless  horsemen,  and  conflicts  of  greater  or 
lesser  importance  were  fought  in  the  same  year, 
1846.  The  Californians  were  not  enamoured  of 
Mexico  and  knew  they  were  too  weak  to  exist  as 
an  entity.  An  inchoate  prejudice  against  Mexico 
smouldered  at  the  period  of  the  American  irrup- 
tion, and  therefore,  after  the  taking  of  Los  Angeles 
by  the  Americans,  the  Californians  quietly  dis- 
banded and  returned  to  the  enjoyment  of  life, 
certain  that  the  Americans  would  leave  their 
lands  and  other  property  untouched.  The  treaty 

[28] 


Early  Days 

of  1847  between  Mexico  and  the  United  States 
ceded  California  to  the  latter  and  it  became  hence- 
forth an  integral  portion  of  our  country. 

Only  a  year  prior  to  the  gold  discovery,  while 
the  land  yet  nestled  in  the  lap  of  oblivion,  Colonel 
Fr6mont,  commander  of  volunteers  and  the  Jason 
of  California,  was  hastily  summoned  from  Los 
Angeles  to  Monterey.  Leaving  the  former  place 
at  early  dawn  with  two  companions,  he  rode  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  miles  before  halting  for 
the  night.  They  had  nine  horses  as  a  caballada, 
driving  six  ahead  of  them,  running  loose  on  the 
trail,  and  changing  every  twenty  miles.  The 
second  day  they  made  a  hundred  and  thirty-five 
miles.  On  the  third  the^  did  not  start  until 
eleven  o'clock,  yet  travelled  seventy  miles,  and 
on  the  fourth  day  they  dashed  into  Monterey  at 
three  o'clock,  having  ridden  ninety  miles  since 
morning  and  four  hundred  and  twenty  miles  in 
four  days.  Fremont  and  his  party  left  on  their 
return,  the  next  day  at  four  of  the  afternoon, 
galloping  forty  miles  that  afternoon,  a  hundred 
and  twenty  next  day,  and  a  hundred  and  thirty 
on  the  two  succeeding  days,  arriving  in  Los 
Angeles  on  the  ninth  day  from  their  departure. 

The  distance  going  and  coming  is  eight  hundred 
and  forty  miles  and  the  trail  for  the  entire  dis- 
tance led  over  steep  hills,  down  gloomy  defiles  and 
precipitous  declivities,  and  across  wild  unpeopled 

F291 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

valleys,  where  only  the  sun  and  compass  guided 
them.  The  actual  hours  in  the  saddle  numbered 
seventy-six,  about  eleven  miles  an  hour. 

Fremont  rode  the  same  horse  forty  miles  on 
the  afternoon  he  left  Monterey  and  ninety  miles 
more  the  day  following,  thus  making  one  hundred 
and  thirty  miles  in  twenty-four  hours  on  one  steed. 

This  charger,  then  left  loose  without  a  master, 
led  the  cavalcade  thirty  miles  farther  that  after- 
noon until  they  came  to  his  pastures.  With  the 
exception  of  this  one  relay  from  Monterey  the 
men  rode  the  same  nine  animals  going  and  re- 
turning. The  horses  were  unshod  and  carried 
with  riders  the  heavy  Mexican  saddles  and 
bridles  then  universally  used.  The  whole  adven- 
ture rivals  Alexander's  pursuit  of  Darius  in  Bactria. 

No  Arabian  steeds  could  surpass  this  feat. 
The  California  horses  were  relatively  small,  but 
with  deep  withers  and  broad  flanks.  Except  in 
weight  and  color  they  very  much  resembled  the 
Arabian  stallions  to  be  seen  in  the  streets  of  Cairo. 
They  were  fed  very  little  grain,  but  the  rich  grasses 
of  the  valleys  near  the  shore  were  heavy  and  sus- 
taining. 

The  legend  of  the  land's  attractions  and  fertility 
had  floated  meanwhile  across  the  continent  and 
men  with  and  without  families  were  traversing 
the  plains  from  the  western  border  states. 

In  1846  there  were  some  three  hundred  volun- 
[30] 


Early  Days 

teers  in  the  American  ranks  at  Monterey,  most  of 
whom  had  very  recently  arrived.  Of  course  the 
knowledge  that  California  was  under  the  American 
flag  served  still  more  to  accelerate  the  hegira,  and 
during  1847  people  from  the  "States"  came  in 
moderate  numbers.  It  was  in  the  winter  of  this 
same  year  that  a  wagon  train  from  Missouri  was 
caught  in  a  driving  storm  near  a  small  frozen  lake 
on  the  summit  of  the  high  Sierras.  Half  of  the 
number  perished  and  some  of  those  who  survived 
did  so  by  becoming  cannibals.  This  is  well 
established,  and  it  should  be  remembered  that  the 
tragedy  occurred  before  the  gold  discovery.  The 
sheet  of  water  was  named  Donner  Lake  for  one 
of  the  dead. 

A  thousand  volunteers  had  enlisted  for  the  war 
and  leaving  New  York  City  had  sailed  around  the 
southern  continent  and  landed  in  San  Francisco 
in  March,  1847,  to  find  the  country  tranquil  and 
all  resistance  ended.  They  disbanded  and  dis- 
persed over  the  interior,  a  number  remaining  in 
San  Francisco,  which  was  rapidly  superseding 
Monterey,  though  the  latter  yet  remained  the 
capital.  Fortunately  for  these  patriotic  Americans 
the  discovery  of  gold  a  few  months  later  furnished 
them  a  boundless  opportunity. 

Gold  was  found  by  accident  in  January,  1848, 
on  a  tributary  of  the  Sacramento  River,  a  few 
miles  from  Sutter's  Fort.  It  is  strange  that  the 

[31] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

intelligence  of  this  marvellous  occurrence  should 
have  travelled  so  slowly,  even  in  California.  We 
read  in  the  journal  of  an  American  navy  chaplain 
at  Monterey,  as  late  as  May,  that  "our  town  was 
startled  out  of  its  quiet  dreams  today  by  the  an- 
nouncement that  gold  had  been  discovered  on  the 
American  Fork,"  and  later,  June  12th,  "A  strag- 
gler came  in  today  from  the  American  Fork  bring- 
ing a  piece  of  yellow  ore  weighing  an  ounce.  The 
young  dashed  the  dirt  from  their  eyes  and  the  old 
from  then*  spectacles.  One  brought  a  spy-glass; 
another  an  iron  ladle;  some  wanted  to  melt  it; 
others  to  hammer  it,  and  a  few  were  satisfied  to 
smell  it. 

"All  were  full  of  tests  and  many  who  could  not 
be  gratified  hi  making  their  experiments  declared 
it  a  humbug.  One  lady  sent  me  a  huge  gold  ring 
in  the  hope  of  reaching  the  truth  by  comparison; 
while  a  gentleman  placed  the  specimen  on  the  top 
of  his  gold-headed  cane  and  held  it  up,  challenging 
the  sharpest  eyes  to  detect  a  difference. 

"But  doubts  still  hovered  hi  the  minds  of  the 
great  mass.  They  could  not  conceive  that  such  a 
treasure  could  have  lain  so  long  undiscovered. 
The  idea  seemed  to  convict  them  of  stupidity." 

But  a  month  later  he  writes  differently: 

"The  gold  fever  has  reached  every  servant  in 
Monterey:  none  are  to  be  trusted  in  their  engage- 
ment beyond  a  week,  and  as  for  compulsion,  it  is 

[32] 


Early  Days 

like  driving  fish  into  a  net  with  the  ocean  before 
them.  General  Mason,  Lieutenant  Lanman  and 
myself  form  a  mess;  we  have  a  house  and  all  the 
table  furniture  and  culinary  apparatus  requisite, 
but  our  servants  have  run,  one  after  another,  till 
we  are  almost  in  despair;  even  Sambo,  who  we 
thought  would  stick  by  from  laziness,  if  no  other 
cause,  ran  last  night,  and  this  morning  for  the 
fortieth  time  we  had  to  take  to  the  kitchen  and 
cook  our  own  breakfast. 

"A  general  of  the  United  States  Army,  the 
commander  of  a  man-of-war  and  the  Alcalde  of 
Monterey,  in  a  smoking  kitchen,  grinding  coffee, 
toasting  herring  and  peeling  onions!" 

Three  days  later: 

"Another  bag  of  gold  from  the  mines  and 
another  spasm  in  the  community.  It  was  brought 
down  by  a  sailor  from  Yuba  River  and  contains 
one  hundred  and  thirty-six  ounces.  It  is  the  most 
beautiful  gold  that  has  appeared  in  the  market. 
My  carpenters  at  work  on  the  school  house,  on 
seeing  it,  threw  down  their  saws  and  planes, 
shouldered  their  picks  and  are  off  for  the  Yuba. 
Three  seamen  ran  from  the  Warren,  forfeiting 
their  four  years'  pay,  and  a  whole  platoon  of 
soldiers  from  the  fort  left  only  their  colors  behind. 

"One  old  woman  declared  she  would  never  again 
break  an  egg  or  kill  a  chicken  without  examining 
yolk  and  gizzard." 

[331 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

So  even  in  California,  one  of  the  most  momen- 
tous events  in  the  history  of  mankind  was  at  first 
doubted,  discredited  and  deprecated.  Well  it 
might  be,  for  in  my  reading  I  cannot  recall  a 
similar  occurrence.  Gold  washing,  it  is  true,  has 
always  been  practised  and  the  metal  found  in 
small  quantities. 

The  Egyptians  excavated  trenches  for  gold  near 
the  Red  Sea,  the  remains  being  yet  visible,  and 
English  capital  is  today  exploiting  the  Pharaonic 
mines.  But  these  were  government  properties 
working  convict  laborers  over  a  very  limited  area. 
Other  parts  of  the  world  had  also  yielded  gold, 
but  never  until  1848  was  it  discovered  in  such 
masses  so  free  to  every  one  and  scattered  over  such 
a  diverse  territory.  We  must  remember  that  this 
was  before  Australia,  the  Klondike  and  South 
Africa. 

Our  minds  today  are  habituated  to  these  and 
many  other  marvellous  happenings  and  inventions 
of  which  our  forbears  never  knew  or  dreamt;  but 
the  finding  of  gold  in  California  in  1848  startled 
the  world.  Perhaps  it  was  the  most  astounding 
discovery  during  the  Christian  era,  and  certainly 
it  is  only  today  that  we  are  really  becoming  con- 
cerned about  the  recent  vast  increase  in  the 
precious  metals. 

Nevertheless,  as  the  intelligence  percolated 
through  channels  and  arteries  of  communication 

[341 


Early  Days 

to  distant  countries,  with  all  the  alluring  pos- 
sibilities of  a  fortune  picked  from  fertile  earth, 
people  appeared  like  vultures  from  the  clear  sky. 
They  came  across  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  and 
around  the  southern  continent  and  over  the  north- 
ern continent.  They  came  by  land  and  sea,  on 
foot  and  horse,  by  sail  and  steamer. 

From  east  and  west  and  south  the  lure  of  gold 
enticed  them  as  it  should,  for  with  gold  we  pur- 
chase everything  but  happiness,  and  that  belongs 
to  none.  There  were  more  Chinese  in  California 
in  1849  than  Europe  had  welcomed  in  a  thousand 
years. 

Flour  came  from  Chili  and  with  it  Chilians, 
Peruvians  and  throngs  of  Sonorians.  These  Latins 
dug  all  day  and  gambled  all  night.  Their  principal 
rivals  were  the  Chinese,  but  the  latter  did  not 
acquire  the  same  privileges.  It  is  related  that  a 
small  party  of  Americans,  travelling  to  the  gold 
fields,  encountered  a  number  of  returning  Sono- 
rians. These  had  tied  rags  on  their  blistered  feet 
and  looked  forlorn  and  wretched,  driving  skeleton 
mules.  They  were  starving  and  begged  for  food. 
A  little  pork  and  biscuit  was  offered  by  the  in- 
comers and  the  Sonorians  took  from  the  back  of 
one  of  the  mules  a  bag  of  gold  and  insisted  on 
giving  a  couple  of  pounds  in  exchange  for  the 
meagre  supply.  They  had  five  hundred  pounds 
of  gold  on  their  perishing  animals,  including  one 
[351 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

mass  weighing  twenty-three  pounds,  yet  such  was 
their  improvidence  that  they  might  have  perished, 
with  only  the  metal  for  companionship. 

In  1848  two  men  who  gambled  away  at  night 
the  gold  they  dug  during  the  day,  desperate,  left 
Tuolumne.  Presently  they  descried  a  couple  of 
returning  miners  sleeping  under  a  tree.  Approach- 
ing stealthily  they  shot  the  sleepers,  looted  the 
gold  and  fled  south,  avoiding  Stockton,  and  camp- 
ing in  the  hills. 

The  next  day  they  encountered  three  men  who 
had  just  deserted  from  a  United  States  vessel  of 
war  at  San  Francisco.  The  five  stayed  for  the 
night  with  an  English  settler  by  whom  they  were 
kindly  entertained  and  who  frankly  told  them  of 
his  success  at  the  mines. 

After  leaving  in  the  early  morning,  they  coun- 
selled, resolved  together,  and  hastily  retracing 
their  steps,  surprised  and  killed  their  host  and 
then  inhumanly  murdered  his  wife,  children  and 
Indian  servants,  in  fact,  every  human  being  on 
the  ranch,  to  the  number  of  twelve.  Gathering 
the  gold,  they  fled,  but  faster  followed  the  avengers 
when  the  woeful  tragedy  was  known. 

Mounted  on  fleet  California  steeds,  the  pursuers 
overtook  the  fugitives  by  the  sea,  south  of  Santa 
Barbara.  One  of  the  outlaws  was  slain  and  a 
second,  finding  escape  hopeless,  sprang  into  the 
deep  waters  that  received  him  in  an  everlasting 

[36] 


Early  Days 

tomb.  The  remaining  three  surrendered  and  were 
tried  at  once  by  an  impromptu  jury  of  twelve 
citizens  chosen  from  the  pursuers.  The  gold 
dust  was  easily  found  among  their  slender  effects. 
The  crime  was  proven  and  admitted.  The  jury 
promptly  sentenced  them  to  death,  and  before 
sunset  the  three  assassins  were  dangling  at  the 
end  of  a  tree  branch  quietly  waving  over  the  waters 
of  the  Pacific  Ocean  far  below.  This  I  believe 
was  the  first  case  of  lynching  after  the  American 
control. 

There  was  no  law  to  try  assassins,  no  courts  to 
condemn  them,  no  prisons  in  which  to  incarcerate 
them.  The  first  and  best  (because  just)  mandate 
is  to  preserve  society  by  punishing  criminals. 
Life  for  life  is  a  decree  that  will  never  be  forgotten, 
and  if  the  tribunals  do  not  enforce  it,  men  will. 
The  grave  is  the  only  prison  that  should  enclose  a 
murderer. 

Remote  as  was  the  goal,  half  of  a  long  year  from 
New  York  and  Europe,  except  via  Panama,  yet 
came  the  world,  ever  thronging  and  thronging. 
The  caravan  of  wagons  extended  over  the  val- 
leys and  topped  the  mountains  from  Missouri  to 
California. 

Ships  sailing  from  New  York,  sweeping  by  the 
misty,  rocky,  stormy  coasts  of  Terra  del  Fuego, 
constituted  a  continuous  fleet.  The  early  estab- 
lishment of  a  double  line  of  steamers  with  the 

[371 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Isthmus  as  a  bridge  made  transportation  rapid 
and  convenient.  Each  person,  wagon,  animal  and 
vessel  was  laden  to  his  or  its  capacity.  There 
were  no  drones,  animate  or  inanimate.  Withal, 
during  that  extraordinary  year  1849,  though  forty- 
four  seagoing  vessels  lay  empty  in  the  bay  of  San 
Francisco,  tides  swaying  their  silent  decks  with 
the  coming  and  going  of  the  moon,  flour  in  the 
gold  fields  sold  at  two  dollars,  coffee  four  dollars 
per  pound,  and  eggs  at  one,  two  and  three  dollars 
each.  On  those  forty-four  vessels,  whose  crews 
had  deserted  —  losing  in  many  cases  a  year's  pay 
—  only  the  watchmen  remained,  for  even  the 
captains  and  other  officers  had  secretly  absconded. 
What  wonder  when  lucky  miners  uncovered  a 
thousand  dollars  between  sunrise  and  sunset  — 
and  no  one  gained  less  than  twenty  dollars  if  he 
dug  diligently!  Twenty  dollars  a  day  to  sailors 
whose  wage  was  the  same  sum  monthly!  In  the 
calm,  warm  summer  and  autumn,  the  miners, 
though  not  entirely  acclimated,  retained  good 
health.  There  is  nothing  harmful  in  sleeping 
under  the  shadowing  limbs  of  a  lofty  pine,  covered 
only  by  the  starlight. 

And  these  men  were  young.  The  average  age 
of  the  arrivals  in  that  sparkling  year  of  1849, 
California's  birthday,  did  not  exceed  twenty-five. 
They  resembled  the  soldiers  of  Napoleon  in  his 
first  Italian  campaigns.  They  had  come  far,  had 

[38] 


Early  Days 

nothing  but  youth  and  courage  and  therefore 
ventured  much  and  yet  little. 

The  incomprehensible  prices  of  food  obtained 
only  at  the  mines,  several  hundred  miles  from  the 
seaboard.  All  supplies  were  transported  on  the 
backs  of  animals  and  men  over  a  dry,  dusty,  hot, 
broad  and  still  broader  plain,  and  then  up  sheer 
acclivities  and  across  the  soaring  mountains. 

The  hopeful  horde,  laden  with  mining  and  cook- 
ing utensils,  swarmed  the  roads  leading  to  their 
paradise,  singing,  cheering,  jesting  —  the  happiest, 
heartiest,  merriest  crusaders  since  Richard  of 
England.  It  was  not  hardship,  sleeping  under 
a  California  sky.  No  rain  in  the  summer  months 
made  the  days  pleasant,  though  dusty.  Many 
of  the  successful  gold  hunters  returned  to  San 
Francisco  after  a  fortunate  season  and  incredible 
stories  are  legendary  of  their  gambling  and  revel- 
ries. They  drank  like  Alexander's  officers,  ban- 
queted like  Lucullus,  and  dissipated  like  Roman 
patricians. 

The  town  of  San  Francisco  embraced  only  two 
or  three  squares,  including  frame  dwellings  and 
tents.  To  complete  one  structure  lumber  was 
bought  at  a  dollar  per  foot. 

After  the  edifice  was  occupied,  a  Methodist 
minister  was  granted  permission  to  hold  service. 
Though  gambling  tables,  at  which  the  games  never 
ceased,  encompassed  him,  he  was  listened  to  with 

[39] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

respect  and  attention.  A  liberal  collection  was 
made  directly  and  handed  to  the  minister  by 
an  old  sailor,  with  the  comforting  observation: 
" Parson,  that  was  a  damned  good  sermon!" 
While  so  distant  from  the  world  these  men  of  '48 
and  '49  did  not  repine.  It  was  before  the  era  of 
murders  and  vigilance  committees. 

Gold  was  abundant  and  all  were  young,  buoyant 
and  hopeful.  There  existed  neither  police,  society 
nor  clubs,  yet  good  order  was  maintained.  The 
alcalde  had  plenary  powers  which  he  exercised  with 
discretion.  The  newly  arrived  sometimes  fared 
hardly.  On  one  occasion  a  man  secreted  a  small 
quantity  of  gold  dust  under  the  sand  of  a  street. 
He  then  took  a  pan  and  began  " prospecting." 
Presently  he  very  naturally  came  to  his  deposit, 
and  after  uncovering  the  sand  and  washing  it  in 
the  stream  hard  by,  lo!  there  was  gold.  A 
number  of  strangers  just  off  a  steamer  at  once  went 
to  the  nearest  shop,  bought  pans  and  patiently 
worked  all  day,  without,  of  course,  finding  any- 
thing, only  to  learn  in  the  evening  the  whole 
ruse,  together  with  the  fact  that  the  shopkeeper 
had  sold  them  all  his  tin  pans  at  about  ten  times 
the  normal  price  —  "a  Yankee  trick." 

The  necessity  of  an  orderly  American  administra- 
tion was  recognized.  California  was  a  territory 
governed  by  a  military  officer  appointed  by  the 
President.  But  his  authority  was  general  and  not 

[40] 


Early  Days 

local.  By  the  summer  of  1849,  myriads  peopled 
the  country,  extending  from  the  gold  fields  to 
the  seacoast.  Conventions  were  held  in  the  sev- 
eral localities,  delegates  elected  and  those  chosen 
assembled  in  Monterey,  where,  after  several  weeks 
of  discussion,  they  adopted  and  submitted  to  the 
populace  a  framed  constitution  for  the  embryo 
state  of  California.  One  of  the  delegates  from 
San  Francisco  was  the  new  arrival  from  New  York, 
David  C.  Broderick.  Eight  of  the  forty-eight 
delegates  were  native  Californians  of  Spanish 
descent  —  no  inconsiderable  proportion  —  which 
exhibits  very  clearly  the  sincerity  and  cordiality 
with  which  the  old  aristocracy  fused  with  the  new 
life  and  nation. 

The  constitution  expressly  prohibited  slavery. 
A  month  later  the  people  sanctioned  its  authority 
by  an  almost  unanimous  vote,  and  on  the  con- 
vening of  the  first  California  legislature  at 
Monterey,  two  United  States  senators,  John  C. 
Fremont  and  William  M.  Gwin,  one  of  the  dele- 
gates to  the  constitutional  convention,  were 
elected.  Gwin  came  to  California  from  Mississippi 
in  1849.  Fremont  had  led  the  American  volun- 
teers with  courage  and  success  during  the  short 
war  of  1846  between  the  native  Californians  and 
the  forces  of  the  United  States.  By  chance  allot- 
ment between  the  two  men,  Fremont's  term  would 
expire  in  1851  and  Gwin's  in  March,  1855. 

[411 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Under  the  constitution  of  the  United  States 
they  could  not  be  recognized  by  the  federal  Senate 
until  after  Congress  had  approved  the  constitution 
of  the  state  of  California  and  the  President  had 
announced  by  proclamation  its  entrance  to  the 
sisterhood  of  states,  which  latter  preliminary  was 
promulgated  in  September,  1850,  when  California 
became  the  thirty-first  state  in  the  federal  union. 
Today,  with  seven  hundred  miles  of  coastline 
backed  by  over  seventy  leagues  of  valley,  plain 
and  mountain,  it  yields  only  to  Texas  in  area 
of  all  the  fifty  commonwealths  embraced  in  the 
union. 

The  most  northerly  of  the  twenty-three  missions 
built  by  the  padres  were  on  the  upper  borders  of 
San  Francisco  Bay.  These  were  also  the  last. 
They  were  gradually  constructed  from  south  to 
north,  each  mission  being  about  a  good  day's  canter 
from  another;  but  after  the  last  one  at  Sonoma  was 
founded,  came  the  Mexican  governors,  then  the 
gringos,  then  chaos. 

A  confirmation  is  afforded  by  observing  the 
local  nomenclature.  South  of  Sonoma  are  sweet 
sounding,  sibilant,  Spanish  accents.  But  north  of 
Sonoma  come  the  harsh,  unyielding  American 
words,  reeking  with  consonants  instead  of  vowels. 
The  old  friars  named  every  place  of  importance 
within  their  demesnes,  and  I  am  glad  that  these 
soft  Castilian  phrases  have  been  retained  by  the 

[42] 


Early  Days 

Americans  who  succeeded  to  the  lands  and  fruits 
thereof. 

California  was  claimed  by  the  early  native  Cali- 
fornians  to  extend  northerly  for  many  leagues 
beyond  Sonoma,  but  the  location  of  the  line  was 
unknown,  it  never  having  been  surveyed  by  their 
officials. 

Sutter's  Fort  on  the  Sacramento  River,  thirty 
leagues  northeast  of  San  Francisco,  was  built,  for- 
tified and  held  by  Captain  Sutter,  a  Swiss,  who 
acknowledged  none,  or  a  very  slight,  allegiance  to 
the  Mexican  authorities.  He  was  neither  disturbed 
nor  molested  by  the  Californians.  Indeed,  there 
was  never  a  platoon  of  soldiers  or  a  mission  within 
many  miles  of  Sutter's  establishment.  It  is  to 
be  recorded  that  the  gold  invaders  stripped  him 
of  his  wealth  in  cattle  and  lands,  slaughtering  the 
one  for  food  and  squatting  on  the  other,  until  the 
broad  and  fertile  valleys  were  involved  in  endless 
litigation.  It  would  have  fared  ill  with  many  of 
the  Americans  had  there  been  no  Sutter  to  welcome 
and  nourish  them  from  his  abundant  stores,  when 
their  weary  caravans  came  to  his  hospitable  por- 
tals, after  months  of  travel  over  arid  and  barren 
plains,  snow  and  ice-capped  mountain  ranges  be- 
set by  Indians,  disease  and  famine.  It  was  just, 
it  was  Christian,  to  give  succor,  but  it  was  often 
repaid  only  by  ingratitude.  Before  the  advent  of 
the  Americans  he  was  lord  of  thousands  of  fruit- 
US! 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

ful  acres,  owner  of  myriads  of  fat  cattle,  sheep, 
mules  and  horses,  with  scores  of  Indian  subjects, 
who  willingly  did  his  behests.  The  Californians 
feared  and  respected  his  tact,  power  and  sterling 
good  judgment.  He  was  superior  to  all,  and  could 
look  confidently  forward  to  establishing  a  little 
principality  of  his  own.  Through  the  irony  of 
fate,  gold  was  first  exposed  on  his  property  by 
one  of  his  employees,  who  promptly  imparted  the 
potent  intelligence  to  General  Sutter.  The  latter 
eagerly  gave  the  tidings  to  the  world.  In  a  very 
few  years  he  was  stripped  of  nearly  all  his  posses- 
sions and  died  in  Washington  at  the  close  of  his 
checkered  career,  vainly  beseeching  Congress  for 
some  restitution  of  the  princely  fortune  filched 
from  him  by  the  Americans. 

His  fate  was  somewhat  akin  to  the  fates  of 
Columbus  and  Balboa.  They  all  won,  and  the 
victory  was  the  cause  of  their  later  utter  desola- 
tion. 

The  hordes  that  devoured  Sutter's  substance 
were  only  a  fragment  of  the  mighty  mass  of  men 
rushing  to  the  lure  of  gold.  In  1849  the  immigra- 
tion exceeded  any  other  twelve  months  preceding 
or  subsequent  thereto.  The  adventurers  embraced 
several  thousand  Orientals,  who,  even  at  that 
early  day,  came  across  the  wide  ocean  seeking 
fortune  on  a  foreign  shore.  All  landed  at  San 
Francisco  and  journeyed  thence  to  the  mines  which 

[44] 


Early  Days 

were  on  the  westerly  slope  of  the  Sierra  Nevada 
Mountains  and  foothills.  The  auriferous  area 
was  gradually  increased  by  discoveries,  but  it  was 
not  until  years  later  that  the  vast  extent  was 
known  and  explored. 

Shasta  and  Los  Angeles  were  both  obscure. 
The  latter  was  a  dusty,  dirty,  miserable  little 
hamlet,  where  existed  a  few  Californians  and 
Indians,  living  in  one-room  adobe  huts.  The 
wealth  of  fruit  and  wine,  that  now  makes  it  the 
paradise  of  the  West,  was  undreamed  of  in  that 
era  and  none  could  divine  its  bright  destiny. 
Between  Los  Angeles  and  San  Diego  lay  forty 
leagues  of  barren  mesa  lands,  over  which  wandered 
cattle  and  a  few  natives.  No  other  place  deserving 
a  name  except  the  missions  was  located  within  a 
hundred  miles  of  Los  Angeles.  The  San  Joaquin 
Valley  was  frequented  only  by  game  and  cattle, 
roaming  freely  without  restraint,  each  careless  of 
the  other's  presence;  and  the  oblong  periphery  of 
San  Francisco  Bay  was  void  of  inhabitants  save 
in  "the  City,"  Benicia  and  the  missions. 

Hence  the  relation  between  the  town  and  the 
mines  was  close  and  binding,  for  there  was  noth- 
ing else.  There  was  no  agriculture  of  any  kind ; 
nothing  was  raised.  Everything  was  brought  to 
the  city  by  water  and  thence  to  the  mines  in  one 
way  or  every  way  thinkable. 

The  glut  of  merchandise,  imported  in  the  scores 
[451 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

of  vessels,  occasioned  curious  incidents  at  times. 
It  is  related  that  during  the  winter  of  '49,  which  was 
very  rainy,  boxes  of  tobacco  unopened  were  thrown 
into  the  crossings  over  some  of  the  streets.  To- 
bacco was  so  plentiful  and  unsalable  that  it  was 
actually  cheaper  to  make  of  the  boxes  a  footway 
than  to  construct  a  bridge  of  lumber.  Mules  are 
said  to  have  been  lost  in  the  mud,  and  an  old  cari- 
cature of  that  eventful  period  represents  men 
walking  or  wading  in  thoroughfares  up  to  their 
waists  in  mud,  while  others  are  being  pulled  out  by 
friends  as  if  from  a  quicksand.  The  habitations 
were  tents,  and  wooden  houses  with  cloth  linings, 
ranged  close  together  on  both  sides  of  narrow 
streets.  Therefore,  when  a  fire  occurred  it  did 
active  execution,  as  there  were  ample  materials. 
Four  fires  occurred  in  nine  months,  each  taking  a 
little  of  what  was  left  by  the  preceding  one,  so  that 
it  was  said  after  the  last  that  the  next  conflagra- 
tion would  have  to  begin  all  over  again,  as  of 
the  earliest  structures  there  was  not  one  left. 

The  people  literally  lived  in  the  streets,  there 
being  very  few  dwellings,  but  plenty  of  hotels  and 
boarding-houses,  and  shops  with  lofts  where  the 
owners  slept.  There  were  no  theatres,  but  many 
drinking  and  gambling  resorts  which,  brightly 
lighted  and  thronged  with  the  world's  tribute, 
were  attractive  and  inviting.  Orientals,  the  most 
impassive  and  consistent  gamblers  on  the  globe, 

[46] 


Early  Days 

chanced  their  ounces  at  the  tables  side  by  side 
with  Occidentals,  and  lost  or  won  with  a  fatalist's 
phlegm. 

All  night  long  the  restless  mass  came  and  went, 
drinking  and  gaming.  The  medium  of  exchange 
was  gold  dust  carried  in  a  deerskin  bag,  from 
which  the  varying  quantities  would  be  weighed  on 
a  pair  of  gold  scales,  with  which  every  business 
establishment  was  provided. 

But  very  few  women  or  families  had  come  into 
the  land  and  the  men  were  young,  fine,  healthy, 
hopeful,  sunny  beings  —  the  salt  of  the  earth. 
Every  one  carried  a  revolver  attached,  on  the  right 
side,  to  a  leather  belt,  buckled  around  the  waist, 
and  the  convenience  of  the  weapon  encouraged 
and  incited  affrays.  Men  cannot  shoot  if  they 
leave  their  weapons  at  home.  All  this  has  been 
since  repeated  in  other  gold  countries,  Australia, 
South  Africa,  the  Klondike;  and  the  scenes  just 
described  have  subsequently  had  their  recurrences 
more  than  once  or  twice;  but  the  first  experience 
of  this  nomadic,  restless,  wandering,  intense  and 
novel  existence  was  in  California.  Besides,  as- 
saults and  crimes  were  committed  in  San  Fran- 
cisco and  in  the  interior  that  did  not  occur  or,  at 
least,  occurred  in  a  very  much  lesser  degree,  in 
the  British  possessions.  British  justice  may  not 
appear  on  the  law  books  as  superior  to  our  own,  but 
as  it  is  regulated  and  applied  by  British  judges 
[47] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

it  protects  life  and  punishes  criminals.  Here  we 
protect  criminals  and  punish  life.  If  we  had 
fewer  lawyers  and  less  law  it  would  be  a  relief  and 
an  advancement. 

The  motley  aggregation  congregated  in  the 
town  and  country  embraced  some  eccentrics. 
It  would  be  odd  if  so  many  nations  could  not 
supply  different  varieties  of  human  nature  to 
laugh  or  weep. 

A  man  who  had  accumulated  many  pounds  of 
gold  enjoyed  his  wealth  in  a  novel  manner.  He 
would  spread  sheets  on  the  floor,  pour  the  metal 
on  them,  walk  upon  it,  roll  in  it,  cast  it  around 
the  apartment  in  handfuls  and  let  the  golden 
stream  descend  over  his  head  and  body  like  Jupi- 
ter upon  Danae. 

A  New  Yorker,  just  disembarked  from  a  Panama 
steamer,  carried  in  his  hand  a  bunch  of  six  pine- 
apples. He  was  presently  accosted  by  a  man  who 
said  abruptly,  pointing  to  the  fruit:  "Do  you 
want  to  sell  them?" 

"Well,  yes."     . 

"How  much?" 

"Well,"  with  doubt  and  hesitation,  for  he  was 
in  a  new  world  where  the  gold  grew  upon  the 
trees.  ' '  Well,  you  may  have  them  for  ten  dollars/ ' 

"Here's  your  money,"  said  the  buyer. 

Directly  afterwards  other  men,  strolling  along 
the  water-front,  saw  the  luscious  product  of  the 

[48] 


Early  Days 

tropics  and  one  of  them  said  to  the  new  owner, 
"How  many  are  there  in  the  bunch?" 

"Six." 

"Want  toselTemall?" 

"No." 

"Will  you  sell  three?" 

"Yes." 

"How  much?" 

"Fifteen  dollars." 

"Here's  your  money,"  and  he  walked  off  leav- 
ing the  first  buyer  with  three  fine  pineapples  and 
five  dollars.  The  New  Yorker  glided  away  with 
that  abstract  expression  of  feature  that  belongs  to 
new  students  of  Euclid. 

The  costume,  besides  the  universal  revolver, 
comprised  a  red  shirt,  corduroy  breeches  and  top 
boots.  The  red  shirt,  or  sometimes  blue,  was  espe- 
cially in  demand.  To  note  a  man  walking  in  this 
apparel  without  coat  or  waistcoat  and  with  his 
head  surmounted  by  a  black  silk  top  hat  would 
seem  to  us  an  amusing  incongruity,  still  it  was 
the  prevailing  style  among  the  richer  residents. 

Amid  such  scenes  and  people,  Broderick  began 
his  new  life. 


[49] 


CHAPTER  III 

IN    THE    SENATE    OF    CALIFORNIA 

T)  RODERICK  arrived  in  San  Francisco  with  a 
•^  resolute  spirit  and  purpose  few  of  those  who 
preceded  or  followed  could  rival  or  excel.  He 
first  secured  employment  in  the  assay  office,  and 
before  many  days  he  conceived  a  clever  and 
ingenious  undertaking.  Gold  and  silver  coins, 
together  with  gold  dust,  were  the  medium  of  ex- 
change. There  was  no  paper  money  or  currency, 
nor  was  there  a  mint  to  transmute  the  metal 
morsels  into  coined  money.  The  customs  dues 
were  large  and  the  government  would  receive  in 
payment  only  gold  and  silver  coins. 

The  bulk  of  the  money  was  brought  in  by  the 
Americans  and  other  immigrants,  and  as  all  sums 
were  retained  by  the  government,  except  the  much 
smaller  amounts  disbursed  as  salaries  to  federal 
officers,  the  scarcity  of  gold  coins  became  daily 
more  acute. 

Within  a  short  period  after  his  arrival  in  Cali- 
fornia Broderick  formed  a  business  relationship 
with  an  assayer  and  at  once  began  the  manufacture 
of  five-  and  ten-dollar  gold  coins  or  "  slugs,"  the 
intrinsic  value  of  the  metal  contained  in  each  coin, 
relatively,  being  only  four  and  eight  dollars. 

[50] 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

These  bore  an  inscription  consisting  simply  of  the 
date,  location  of  coinage  and  the  value  in  dollars. 

The  coins  readily  passed  current  in  the  com- 
munity, for  they  were  far  more  convenient  and 
comfortable  than  parcels  of  gold  dust,  even  if  every 
one  knew  that  the  intrinsic  was  something  less 
than  the  face  value.  Tradespeople  received  and 
paid  them  freely.  Only  the  last  holders  could 
suffer.  Governments  stamp  a  piece  of  paper  with 
some  marks  and  signs  and  directly  it  becomes  of 
value.  Why  should  not  private  persons  do  the 
same  in  the  absence  of  official  prohibition?  Bro- 
derick  proceeded  on  this  assumption  and  gained 
immense  profits.  He  added  to  assaying  the 
manufacture  of  jewelry  and  himself  used  a  sledge 
hammer  in  the  stamping  press. 

I  have  said  already  that  he  was  not  a  commercial 
business  man,  and  yet  when  I  reflect,  I  must  admit 
that  the  few  enterprises  in  which  he  engaged  were 
distinct  successes. 

In  the  first  year  he  was  in  California  Broderick 
was  elected  one  of  the  delegates  from  San  Fran- 
cisco to  the  convention  charged  with  framing  a 
constitution  for  the  new  state.  Concerning  his 
service  in  this  body  we  know  little. 

Within  seven  months  after  Broderick  landed  in 
San  Francisco  one  of  the  state  senators  from  that 
city  resigned.  A  special  election  was  held  to  fill 
the  vacancy.  Broderick  was  elected  and  took 

[511 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

his  seat  in  the  Senate  of  California  on  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  January,  1850. 

Nothing  important  occurred  during  the  latter 
part  of  his  first  session,  while  he  was  serving  the 
unexpired  term  of  his  predecessor,  which  had 
begun  in  the  autumn  of  1849.  New  elections  were 
held  and  Broderick  was  again  returned  to  the 
state  Senate  representing  the  city  of  San  Francisco. 

In  January,  1851,  hardly  a  fortnight  after  the 
legislature  assembled,  occurred  the  first  of  the 
California  rencounters  which  were  destined,  alas, 
to  be  fatal  to  him.  The  governor  resigned  and, 
under  the  law,  the  lieutenant  governor  succeeded 
to  the  station  thus  vacated.  The  president  of 
the  Senate  was  the  lieutenant  governor.  His 
promotion  to  the  higher  place  left  his  own  vacant. 
Broderick  was  at  once  indicated  as  an  aspirant. 
In  a  joint  meeting  of  the  Senate  and  the  Assembly 
a  member  of  the  Assembly  named  Moore  delivered 
a  short  address  stating  that  he  was  "opposed  to 
the  resignation  of  good  men  especially  when  they 
were  to  be  succeeded  in  the  office  by  persons  about 
whose  character  I  know  nothing." 

This  was  understood  to  apply  to  Broderick. 
The  latter,  who  would  brook  nothing,  at  once  arose 
and  made  a  caustic  retort.  The  body  adjourned 
in  due  course  and  later  in  the  day  the  Senate  met 
and  elected  Broderick  lieutenant  governor  of  Cali- 
fornia. He  was  advancing.  Only  a  little  over  a 

[52] 


0\ 
CO 


Mirt. 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

year  in  the  country  and  already  lieutenant  gover- 
nor. An  hour  later  nothing  but  cool  courage  and 
calmness  saved  his  ambitious  soul  from  death. 
That  evening  Broderick,  accompanied  by  a  friend, 
passed  Moore  on  a  street.  After  passing,  Brod- 
erick heard  the  words  " scoundrel,  rascal,"  used 
by  Moore.  Broderick  turned  on  his  heel  and  faced 
him.  Moore  produced  a  revolver  and  repeated 
the  words.  Broderick  immediately  struck  at  him 
but  missed,  and  Moore  was  then  seized  and  dis- 
armed. He  was  taken  into  an  apartment  adjoin- 
ing, but  presently  rushed  out  again  to  Broderick 
on  the  street.  Some  one  had  given  Moore  another 
or  the  same  weapon,  and  the  furious  man,  who 
possessed  an  unenviable  reputation  as  a  desperado, 
levelled  his  weapon  within  a  yard  of  Broderick, 
who  stood  immobile,  saying,  "I  will  shoot  you, 
you  scoundrel!"  There  was  a  cry  of  "He's  going 
to  fire! "  and  the  crowd  scattered.  But  Broderick, 
turning  his  steel-blue  eyes  sparkling  with  fire  on 
his  assailant,  cried:  "You  cowardly  assassin,  why 
don't  you  fire?  You  dare  not  fire,  you  coward!  " 
The  two  men  faced  each  other,  one  with  the 
weapon  of  death  trembling  in  his  nervous  hand  and 
the  other  armed  only  with  courage  and  conscience. 
Awed  by  his  resolute  antagonist,  Moore  hesitated. 
In  another  moment  the  pistol  was  wrested  from 
his  grasp  and  Broderick  was  saved.  His  un- 
flinching firmness  in  this  affair,  together  with  the 

[53] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

6clat  of  the  office  to  which  he  had  just  been  ele- 
vated, made  him  at  once  the  most  conspicuous 
personage  in  the  legislature  and  brought  him 
directly  to  the  knowledge  of  the  miners. 

The  circumstance  that  his  assailant  was  South- 
ern while  Broderick  was  Northern  added  a  graver 
tinge  to  the  colors  of  feeling  that  the  affray  pro- 
duced. It  was  the  beginning  of  the  feud  that 
only  ended  with  his  death.  Personal  courage  is 
the  highest  of  all  human  attributes.  As  long  as 
we  love  life  and  dread  death,  it  shall  be  exalted 
above  the  clouds. 

Broderick' s  career  in  the  legislature  as  lieuten- 
ant governor  seems  to  have  been  approved.  Here 
is  what  one  of  the  publications  of  that  period  said : 

"  Something  is  due  to  this  distinguished  citizen 
for  the  dignity,  ability  and  impartiality  with 
which  he  has  discharged  the  various  arduous 
duties  imposed  upon  the  presiding  officer  of  the 
Senate.  He  has  thus  far  administered  the  duties 
of  that  officer  in  a  manner  gratifying  to  every 
member  of  the  Senate.  I  do  not  know  that  a 
single  member  of  the  opposition  has  at  any  time 
expressed  dissatisfaction  at  the  manner  in  which 
Mr.  Broderick  has  performed  his  duties.  This  is 
a  rare  and  exceedingly  gratifying  fact.  A  presid- 
ing officer,  however  just  and  able,  seldom  escapes 
the  animadversion  of  his  political  opponents. 

"Mr.  Broderick  is  a  good  parliamentarian;  he 
[54] 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

is  familiar  with  parliamentary  rules;  his  decisions 
are  promptly  given,  and  an  appeal  from  one  of 
them  has  never  yet  been  taken  by  any  Senator. 
The  facility  and  despatch  with  which  the  busi- 
ness of  the  Senate  is  transacted  is  a  subject  of 
general  remark  and  congratulation. 

11  In  this  respect  the  Senate  of  California  can 
vie  with  the  Senates  of  any  of  the  American 
States." 

He  was  at  ease  in  political  assemblages.  While 
never  a  fluent  or  ready  speaker  he  made  a  study 
in  this  position  of  the  ordinary  rules  and  customs 
governing  conventions,  so  that  on  subsequent 
occasions  his  tactical  knowledge  of  technical  rules 
was  invaluable  to  his  cause.  At  this  same  legisla- 
ture an  effort  was  made  to  elect  a  successor  to 
Fremont,  whose  term  had  expired.  Fremont  was 
a  Southerner,  but  yet,  in  the  short  period  during 
which  he  was  senator  he  announced  his  abhorrence 
of  slavery.  That,  of  course,  ranged  against  him 
many  of  his  former  friends  and  allies.  One  hun- 
dred and  forty-two  ballots  were  taken,  and  there 
being  no  election  the  legislature  adjourned,  leaving 
the  senatorship  vacant.  A  year  passed  away  and 
at  its  next  session  the  legislature  elected  John 
B.  Weller,  who  also  was  a  Southerner,  as  Fremont's 
successor. 

Again  Broderick's  mettle  was  tested,  and  again 
his  life  was  in  jeopardy.  The  occasion  was  so 

[55] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

similar  to  the  one  of  a  year  previous  that  it 
would  be  easy  to  conceive  that  it  was  more  than 
coincidence.  Ex-Governor  Smith,  a  man  of  dis- 
tinction and  ex-governor  of  one  of  the  Southern 
states,  villified  Broderick  at  a  Democratic  con- 
vention in  a  violent  address.  The  latter  was  not 
present,  but,  true  to  his  nature,  he  replied  at  the 
next  session  of  the  state  Senate,  virulently  re- 
proaching the  former  governor.  Governor  Smith's 
son  promptly  challenged,  and  Broderick  promptly 
accepted.  They  met  in  Contra  Costa  County, 
being  thus  immune  from  arrest,  and  each  opponent 
emptied  his  revolver  at  the  other,  standing  twenty 
yards  apart.  Broderick,  who  does  not  seem  to 
have  been  a  good  shot,  missed  altogether,  but 
Smith  with  his  sixth  and  last  bullet  struck  the 
watch  Broderick  carried  in  the  fob  of  his  trousers. 
The  latter's  skin  was  slightly  abraded  by  the  im- 
pact, but  the  watch  possibly  saved  his  life.  Years 
later,  after  Broderick's  death,  this  watch  was 
found  among  his  effects  carefully  safeguarded. 

A  few  weeks  after  the  duel  Broderick,  from  his 
place  in  the  Senate,  said: 

"I  rise,  Mr.  President,  to  a  question  of  privi- 
lege. On  a  former  occasion  I  alluded  from  my 
place  in  the  Senate  to  an  honorable  citizen  by 
name,  reflecting  upon  him  in  somewhat  personal 
language.  My  remarks  on  that  occasion  were 
prompted  by  a  feeling  of  vexation  from  remarks 

[561 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

reported  to  have  been  made  by  that  gentleman 
reflecting  upon  myself  in  the  Democratic  Conven- 
tion. I  have  this  day  received  from  Governor 
Smith  a  letter  which,  with  the  indulgence  of  the 
Senate,  I  will  read: 

"  HON.  D.  C.  BRODERICK. 

'  SIR  : — Having  made  remarks  in  the  Democratic 
Convention,  which  yourself  and  others  supposed 
reflected  on  you,  and  having  just  learned  from 
a  reliable  source  that  you  had  no  connection, 
with  the  transaction  then  referred  to,  I  now, 
deeming  it  my  duty,  take  great  pleasure  in 
withdrawing  anything  then  said  of  a  disagree- 
able nature.  (^r 

Yours, 

(Signed)  'WM.  SMITH/ 

"Regretting  as  I  do  the  occasion  which  led  me 
into  remarks  unpleasant  to  Governor  Smith,  I 
now  take  pleasure  in  promptly  withdrawing  the 


same." 


I  have  quoted  this  letter  and  his  observations 
textually,  for  I  think  that  they  illuminate  the 
character  of  Broderick.  In  neither  of  these  alter- 
cations was  he  the  aggressor,  and  yet  in  neither 
does  he  seem  entirely  blameless. 

His  replies  are  not  alone  vigorous,  but  harsh  and 
violent.  They  show  him  to  have  been  stern 
and  implacable;  he  gave  "a  word  for  a  word,  a 

[57] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

blow  for  a  blow."  It  is  well  that  the  acerbities  of 
political  controversies  are  much  more  mellow  now 
than  sixty  years  ago.  We  have  no  duels  nor  do 
we  essay  to  slay  one  another  for  a  mere  quip.  But 
the  words  that  today  cause  a  smile,  in  those  days 
caused  a  shot.  Amid  the  stirring  scenes  of  that 
epoch,  no  man  dared  blench,  and  if  he  was  not 
killed  he  became  popular,  following  Wolseley's 
aphorism  to  the  young  ensign. 

Another  episode  followed.  Stephen  J.  Field  — 
who  subsequently  became  a  justice  of  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court  —  was  a  member  of  the 
Assembly.  He  represented  an  interior  district 
and  had  had  an  embittered  controversy  with  the 
judge  of  the  local  court  before  whom  he  practised. 

Field  introduced  a  resolution  looking  to  the 
impeachment  of  the  local  judge  and  spoke  thereon. 
He  was  answered  by  Moore,  another  member  of 
the  Assembly,  who  possessed  an  intimate  friend- 
ship with  Judge  Turner,  the  object  of  Field's 
enmity.  Every  one  carried  weapons.  The  As- 
sembly embraced  thirty-six  members  and  over 
two-thirds  never  appeared  without  displaying 
knives  or  pistols  or  both.  It  was  the  habit  for  a 
legislator  when  he  entered  the  sacred  portals  of 
the  House  to  take  off  his  pistols  and  lay  them  in 
his  desk  before  resuming  his  seat.  This  was  so 
natural  as  to  attract  neither  surprise  nor  obser- 
vation. But  when  Moore  arose  to  address  the 

[58] 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

Assembly,  he  deliberately  opened  his  desk,  took 
out  two  revolvers,  cocked  them  and,  closing  the 
lid,  deposited  the  pistols  on  the  top.  He  then 
vilified  Field  atrociously,  stigmatizing  him  very 
offensively  and  declaring  more  than  once  that  he 
was  responsible  for  his  utterances  both  there  and 
elsewhere. 

Field  replied  only  to  his  arguments.  His  epi- 
thets required  another  kind  of  rhetoric.  Hence, 
when  the  body  adjourned,  Field  applied  succes- 
sively to  two  brother  members  desiring  them  to 
carry  his  cartel  to  Moore.  Both  declined,  alleging 
the  constitutional  inhibition  against  duelling  and 
its  implication  of  both  principals  and  seconds. 

The  formidable  reputation  of  Moore  as  a  despe- 
rado was  recalled.  Field  was  troubled  and  dis- 
consolate. In  the  evening  while  meditating 
sombrely,  he  wandered  into  the  Senate  chamber, 
where  Broderick  sat  writing  at  his  desk.  Up  to 
this  time  they  enjoyed  only  a  desultory  acquaint- 
ance with  each  other.  Broderick  looked  up  and 
exclaimed,  "Why,  judge,  you  don't  look  well. 
What  is  the  matter?"  Field  said,  "I  don't  feel 
well  either,  for  I  have  not  a  friend  in  the  world." 
Broderick  continued,  "What  is  it  worries  you?" 
Thereupon  Field  told  him.  When  Broderick  had 
heard  all,  he  at  once  said,  "My  dear  Field,  I  will 
be  your  friend  in  this  matter;  sit  down  and  write 
a  note  at  once  to  Moore  and  I  will  deliver  it." 

[591 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Field  wrote,  demanding  a  public  retraction  or  a 
duel.  Broderick  directly  called  on  Moore.  The 
latter,  after  perusing  the  missive,  stated  that  he 
expected  to  be  a  candidate  for  Congress  and  thus 
could  not  accept  the  challenge.  But  he  added 
that  he  would  meet  Field  in  the  street  any  time 
and  place  and  be  ready.  Broderick  asserted  that 
a  street  brawl  and  shooting  were  not  quite  correct 
between  gentlemen,  but  if  Moore,  after  what  he 
had  said  in  the  Assembly,  declined  a  formal  duel, 
there  was  no  other  course  but  to  assent  to  his  sug- 
gestion, and  he  added  that  Field  would  be  found  on 
the  street  at  a  stipulated  time  the  next  morning. 

An  hour  later  Moore  met  Broderick  again  and 
told  him  he  would  reply  to  Field's  note  in  the 
morning  and  that  the  answer  would  be  delivered 
by  Mr.  Baldwin,  another  assemblyman. 

Broderick  took  Field  to  the  outskirts  of  the 
town  in  the  early  dawn,  handed  him  a  navy 
revolver  and  pointing  at  a  knot  on  a  tree  thirty 
yards  distant  said,  " Shoot!"  Field  struck  the 
knot  three  times  in  five  shots,  which  is  by  no 
means  bad  target  practice.  They  returned,  and 
Broderick,  meeting  and  accosting  Baldwin,  asked 
for  Moore's  reply.  Baldwin  said  that  his  princi- 
pal had  made  up  his  mind  to  do  nothing  farther  in 
the  matter.  "Then,"  said  Broderick,  "as  soon 
as  the  House  meets,  Judge  Field  will  arise  in  his 
seat  and  refer  to  the  attack  on  him  and  to  the 

[60] 


In  the  Senate  of  California 

language  of  Moore,  wherein  he  stated  that  he  held 
himself  responsible  for  what  he  said,  that  respect 
for  the  dignity  of  the  House  had  prevented  him 
from  replying  to  the  attack  at  the  time  in  the  terms 
deserved,  that  he  had  since  demanded  satisfaction 
of  Moore  for  his  language,  and  that  Moore  had 
refused  to  respond,  and  will  thereupon  pronounce 
him  a  liar  and  a  coward." 

"Then,"  said  Baldwin,  "Judge  Field  will  get 
shot  in  his  seat." 

"In  that  case,"  rejoined  Broderick,  "there  will 
be  others  shot,  too."  He  hastened  to  Field,  related 
the  conversation  and  asked  if  the  latter  would  do 
as  he  told  Baldwin.  Field,  who  through  the  entire 
affair  conducted  himself  most  chivalrously,  quickly 
assented. 

The  House  met  a  few  minutes  later.  Broderick 
sat  near  Field  and  around  them  were  a  number  of 
Broderick's  friends,  fully  armed  and  prepared. 
Both  Moore  and  Field  simultaneously  arose,  but 
the  speaker  recognized  Moore,  who  at  once  read  a 
full,  ample  and  satisfactory  apology,  and  that  was 
the  end.  Did  Field  recall  this  memory  when, 
nearly  forty  years  thereafter,  he  beheld  the  slayer 
of  Broderick  fall  dead  at  his  feet!  Tacitus  ob- 
serves, "men's  minds  revert  from  present  to  past, 
with  infinite  apprehension."  It  must  be  confessed 
that  deeds  like  Broderick's  detailed  in  this  incident 
forge  chains  whose  links  outlast  life. 

[61] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Field  escaped  a  dangerous  situation  with  both 
life  and  honor,  and  he  never  forgot  either  the 
occasion  or  the  man. 

These  occurrences  made  Broderick  a  natural  and 
conscious  leader  in  state  politics  and,  although  he 
returned  tranquilly  to  his  lucrative  pursuit,  he  was 
never  consigned  to  oblivion.  His  term  as  state 
senator  expired,  but  when  next  he  wore  the  toga, 
it  was  in  the  chamber  of  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States. 


[62] 


CHAPTER  IV 

PROGRESS 


the  years  immediately  follow- 
ing  1849  passed.  The  state  gradually  aug- 
mented its  population  to  a  quarter  of  a  million 
for  whom  San  Francisco  was  as  Rome.  San  Jose*, 
Stockton,  Sacramento  and  other  interior  towns 
came  to  their  own  slowly.  When  miners  left  the 
gold  district  they  went  directly  to  San  Francisco, 
for  in  that  city  they  met  friends  and  witnessed 
amusements.  Every  citizen  was  struggling  to 
improve,  but  it  was  no  slight  task  to  construct  all 
the  accessories  of  a  modern  town,  such  as  sanitary, 
fire  and  water  necessities,  streets  and  sidewalks, 
from  simple  mud  and  sand,  with  no  system  of 
local  taxation  and  no  insurance. 

It  was  not  until  1852  that  fire  insurance  com- 
panies established  agencies.  All  the  California 
cities  without  exception  suffered  from  the  devasta- 
tion of  fire.  San  Francisco,  especially,  was  burned 
and  partially  destroyed  time  after  time. 

The  scanty  water  supply,  contained  in  a  few 
artificial  reservoirs  sunk  at  street  corners,  would 
be  exhausted  in  an  hour.  During  the  summer, 
with  the  town  fanned  by  the  strong  trade  winds, 
any  conflagration  was  inevitably  destructive  to 

[631 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

the  tents  and  board  shelters.  Ships,  deserted 
by  their  crews  and  anchored  in  the  mud,  which 
gradually  mounted  as  the  streets  were  built  into 
the  waters,  had  been  transformed  into  stationary 
hotels;  one  even  served  as  a  prison.  A  number  of 
these  ships  were  destroyed,  the  fire  burning  sails, 
shrouds,  masts  and  bulwarks  down  to  the  level 
of  the  soil  in  which  they  lay  embedded.  The 
keels  made  a  good  foundation  for  a  superstructure 
of  shops  and  lodging-houses,  which  were  rapidly 
occupied.  Years  later,  in  removing  the  upper 
works  to  build  on  the  now  valuable  locations, 
keels  of  once  splendid  clippers  that  queened  the 
waves  have  been  uncovered  from  the  deep  soil 
into  which  they  had  sunk.  In  one  of  them  were 
found  some  baskets  of  champagne,  the  wine 
proving  delicious  to  the  gourmet,  even  after 
thirty-six  years7  submersion. 

The  fire  engines  of  this  period  were  manned  by 
volunteers.  Broderick,  faithful  to  his  New  York 
instincts,  had  organized  Empire  Engine  Company 
No.  1,  of  which  he  was  foreman  and  which  took 
his  name  after  his  death.  Of  course  he  relin- 
quished his  active  association  when  higher  aims 
intervened. 

Nevertheless,  the  state  flourished.  Millions  and 
millions  of  gold  were  annually  extracted  and  the 
mining  area  continually  enlarged.  In  the  north  half 
of  the  state,  embracing  Shasta  and  Yreka — regions 

[64] 


Progress 

that  possessed  only  a  name  in  the  missionary 
days  —  auriferous  soils  were  located.  The  miners 
flocked  to  the  new  placers,  for  whatever  we  may 
have,  we  are  not  content,  and  the  unknown  always 
fascinates.  But  it  was  a  free,  happy,  merry  life 
for  those  young  men,  clad  in  their  red  and  blue 
shirts,  corduroy  trousers  and  top  boots,  sleeping 
beneath  the  stars  and  hoping  to  find  a  fortune 
under  every  stone  —  in  every  sylvan  glen  or  in 
every  rivulet  that  laced  the  Sierra  Nevadas. 
They  were  forever  searching  for  the  unseen  treasure 
that  lay  somewhere  beneath  the  soaring  summits; 
somewhere  within  those  sunless  recesses,  walled 
by  crags  that  leap  to  the  clouds. 

After  the  day's  toil  came  the  campfires,  near  the 
running  waters  and  under  the  martial  pines. 
Their  wild  and  jocund  halloas  filled  the  canon 
and  were  lost  surmounting  the  trees.  The  beauty 
of  these  wild  woods,  where  one  communes  with 
unviolated  nature,  refreshes  the  brain,  fills  the 
lungs  and  lightens  the  spirit.  The  successful 
adventurers  came  to  the  urban  places  during  the 
winter;  the  others  built  cabins  and  mined,  the 
rains  softening  the  soil  and  rendering  it  much 
easier  to  treat. 

Presently  the  splendid  resources  of  the  country 
for  agriculture  were  manifested  and  people  began 
to  cultivate  the  land.  Most  of  the  flour  was  im- 
ported from  South  America  and  cargoes  of  cereals, 

[65] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

coining  from  New  York  and  foreign  lands,  were 
brought  to  California  shores. 

During  the  year  1852  five  hundred  and  sixty- 
eight  vessels  arrived  from  abroad  in  the  port  of 
San  Francisco,  of  which  five  hundred  and  twenty- 
four  were  American  ships.  Fancy  that  proportion 
today!  Only  one  in  ten  were  foreign-made  or 
foreign-manned ! 

The  farmer  gradually  came  to  raise  many  art- 
icles of  food  cheaper  and  more  appetizing  than  the 
imported  kinds,  and  the  old  days  of  speculators 
buying  all  of  a  certain  commodity  in  the  mar- 
ket and  then  doubling  the  price  passed  away. 
Many  found  it  more  profitable  and,  at  least,  less 
uncertain  than  mining,  and  continued  to  prosper 
until  gold  became  second  in  value  to  other  prod- 
ucts of  the  soil. 

Every  miner  slung  his  six-shooter  at  his  waist 
on  going  out  of  his  abode.  In  San  Francisco  in 
1851  no  one  was  safe  from  assaults,  even  on  the 
streets  or  in  his  home.  Hence  every  one  carried 
deadly  weapons  —  the  revolver  or  the  bowie  knife. 

The  number  of  duels  and  personal  encounters 
was  prodigious.  From  the  day  they  disembarked 
the  new  arrivals  found  excitement.  A  month  was 
a  year,  a  week  a  month.  Each  day  had  its  own 
history  both  for  the  town  and  for  individuals. 
The  pleasures  were  restless  and  no  one  had  leisure 
to  be  courteous.  Perhaps  one  man  calls  another 

[66] 


Progress 

a  liar  and,  instantly  —  revolvers,  shooting,  silence! 
The  silenced  may  be  an  innocent  bystander  rather 
than  the  half-drunken  reveller.  The  South  Ameri- 
cans and  Mexicans  favored  the  bowie  knife.  It 
was  discreet  and,  handled  with  adroitness  and 
dexterity,  might  be  quicker  than  the  pistol. 
Brawls  occurred  nightly.  No  one  was  arrested; 
no  one  warned,  except,  perhaps,  by  his  enemy. 
The  prison  was  a  ship,  and  the  police  too  few  and 
inefficient.  But  the  avenging  Vigilance  Commit- 
tee eventually  applied  to  these  evils  drastic  and 
efficacious  remedies. 

The  commerce  of  the  city  enlarged  with  increas- 
ing values  during  the  passing  years.  In  new 
formations  one  often  finds  some  simple  but  neces- 
sary ingredient  lacking,  the  least  valuable  and 
yet  most  wanting.  After  one  of  the  usual  normal 
conflagrations  small  tacks  were  in  demand  to  nail 
cloth  and  muslin  on  wooden  partitions.  The 
supply  was  exhausted  and  they  sold  as  gold,  weight 
for  weight  —  tacks  on  one  side  of  the  scales  and 
gold  on  the  other  until  nicely  balanced.  They 
were  like  Crusoe's  axe,  which  was  more  valuable 
to  him  than  all  his  Spanish  doubloons. 

Meanwhile,  in  the  city,  better  hotels  and 
theatres  —  buildings  of  brick  and  stone  —  were 
erected.  Streets  were  excavated  from  the  sand, 
mud  and  bogs,  paved  and  sewered.  The  invisible 
lots  under  the  water-front  were  sold  on  various 

[67] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

occasions  at  auction  and  the  purchasers  piled, 
capped  and  built  thereon,  thereby  adding  a  new 
quarter.  It  was  by  purchasing  at  these  public 
sales  that  Broderick  became  wealthy.  His  avo- 
cation of  rivalling  the  alchemists  had  many 
competitors,  including,  at  length,  the  federal 
government,  which  established  an  assay  office  in 
San  Francisco. 

Foreseeing  this  result  he  invested  his  capital  and 
all  he  could  borrow  in  water  lots.  He  was  a  bold 
man,  who  was  forever  daring  Chance.  Though 
he  never  " gambled,"  yet  he  speculated  with 
his  life  and  future,  unlocked  and  open.  These 
properties  increased  in  value  many  fold  and  there- 
after he  experienced  no  real  want  of  money  for  his 
political  campaigns. 

Not  for  a  day,  not  for  a  moment  had  he  for- 
gotten his  matured  resolve  to  become  senator  from 
California.  Like  the  coral  insects  he  labored  and 
built  without  cessation.  Entirely  dedicated  to 
ambition,  he  did  not  relax,  but  placed  stone  after 
stone  on  the  temple  of  his  life. 

He  was  omnipresent  in  all  public  matters. 
Was  it  a  committee  to  send  succor  to  distressed 
immigrants  —  Broderick  was  chairman.  Was  it 
a  question  of  a  new  municipal  building  for  the 
city  —  there  he  was  in  the  familiar  plaza,  relic 
of  Mexican  days,  where  all  gatherings  were  held, 
positive,  brusque,  intolerant,  triumphant.  He 

[68] 


Progress 

was  a  most  energetic  citizen  and  nothing  could 
daunt  his  resolution. 

Everybody  respected  him  and  some  liked  him. 
He  became  more  dignified,  austere  and  reserved. 
The  man  seemed  to  grow  with  the  glow  of  his 
intense  mentality.  It  was  no  longer  "How  are 
you,  Dave?"  but  "How  are  you,  Mr.  Broder- 
ick?"  The  press  always  wrote  of  him  as  the 
"Hon.  D.  C.  Broderick."  Even  the  roistering 
firemen,  boyhood  companions  of  New  York  days, 
who  had  followed  him  towards  the  setting  sun, 
became  quiet  and  considerate  in  his  presence. 
To  preserve  and  deserve  this  transition  he  became 
studious. 

He  had  attended  school  but  very  little  while  a 
boy.  His  father  died  when  he  was  fourteen  and 
there  were  his  mother  and  brother.  Books  were 
almost  a  puzzle  to  him.  His  brain  was  concrete, 
not  abstract,  practical,  not  didactic.  His  place 
was  in  the  open,  not  in  the  study  or  office.  So  he 
set  himself  now  to  make  the  new  cogs  that  he  felt 
essential  to  the  wheel  of  his  future.  He  read  and 
studied  night  after  night  in  his  quiet  room,  like 
a  school  boy  preparing  for  college.  It  is  said  that 
he  engaged  an  apartment  distant  from  his  usual 
domicile,  where  he  spent  long  hours  in  absorbing 
knowledge,  the  knowledge  that  books  impart. 
Certainly  there  was  nothing  in  his  conversation 
thereafter  that  betrayed  a  lack  of  cultivation. 
[69] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

He  dressed  carefully  in  the  ordinary  apparel  of 
the  merchant  or  statesman:  black  frock  coat,  vest 
and  tie,  with  white  shirt.  Rather  an  innovation  if 
not  an  improvement  on  the  red  shirt,  high  boots, 
corduroy  trousers  and  belted  six-shooter  of  '49. 
Broderick  seldom  carried  a  weapon,  by  day  or 
night,  even  when  his  life  was  threatened,  which 
was  more  the  observance  than  the  breach.  Only 
cowards  go  armed.  He  was  strong,  active,  broad 
shouldered,  a  good  boxer,  and  could  easily  take 
care  of  himself  with  most  men. 

In  San  Francisco  he  became  the  dictator  of  the 
municipality.  His  political  lessons  and  observa- 
tions in  New  York  were  priceless.  He  introduced 
a  modification  of  the  same  organization  in  San 
Francisco  with  which  Tammany  has  controlled 
New  York  for  lo!  these  many  years. 

It  was  briefly  this.  At  a  forthcoming  election 
a  number  of  offices  were  to  be  filled:  those  of 
sheriff, district  attorney,  alderman  and  places  in  the 
legislature.  Several  of  these  positions  were  very 
lucrative,  notably  that  of  the  sheriff,  tax-collector 
and  assessor.  The  incumbents  received  no  speci- 
fied salaries,  but  were  entitled  to  all  or  to  a  certain 
proportion  of  the  fees.  These  fees  occasionally 
exceeded  $50,000  per  annum.  Broderick  would 
say  to  the  most  popular  or  the  most  desirable 
aspirant:  "This  office  is  worth  $50,000  a  year. 
Keep  half  and  give  me  the  other  half,  which  I 

[70] 


Progress 

require  to  keep  up  our  organization  in  the  city  and 
state.  Without  intelligent,  systematic  discipline 
neither  you  nor  I  can  win,  and  our  opponents  will 
conquer,  unless  I  have  money  enough  to  pay  the 
men  whom  I  may  find  necessary.  If  you  agree 
to  that  arrangement  I  will  have  you  nominated 
when  the  convention  assembles  and  then  we  will 
all  pull  together  until  after  the  election."  Pos- 
sibly this  candidate  dissented,  but  then  some  one 
else  consented,  and  as  the  town  was  hugely  Demo- 
cratic his  selections  were  usually  victorious.  It 
may  be  asked,  who  gave  him  power  and  authority? 
By  what  right  dared  he  assume  this  prerogative? 
What  monarch  constituted  him  viceroy  and  or- 
dained that  he  should  dictate  to  the  citizens  of 
San  Francisco  the  men  who  should  rule  the  city, 
manage  its  finances,  direct  its  police,  choose  its 
judges  and  control  its  schools?  Broderick  might 
have  responded  in  the  words  of  Napoleon  when 
he  said  that  "he  found  the  crown  of  France  in 
the  gutter,  picked  it  up  and  put  it  on  his  head." 
When  he  came  there  was  chaos  and  he  created 
order.  There  was  no  party  system  in  the  town 
and  he  constructed  one.  It  was  the  beginning  and 
he  was  perforce  the  architect.  He  was  also  ship- 
wright and  captain.  Yet  he  never  interfered  in 
local  affairs  nor  undertook  to  influence  the  city 
officials  on  purely  civic  questions.  It  was  said 
of  him  from  the  first  that  he  was  a  citizen  of  Cali- 

[71] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

fornia,  and  not  of  any  section.  The  same  methods 
that  were  so  brilliantly  successful  —  because 
methodically  directed  in  the  city  —  he  introduced 
into  the  more  populous  counties.  He  was  as 
supreme  in  Sacramento  as  in  San  Francisco  and 
hi  every  region  of  importance  he  maintained  men 
whose  care  it  was  to  proselytize  Broderick  adher- 
ents, and  above  all  to  select  legislative  candidates 
who  would  be  favorable  to  his  well  known  and 
openly  avowed  candidacy  for  the  senate.  These 
men  were  paid  by  Broderick  a  regular  stipend, 
like  employees  hi  a  merchandise  establishment, 
when  he  could  find  for  them  no  permanent 
appointment. 

Moreover,  from  1854  he  was  the  recipient  from 
Governor  Bigler  of  considerable  patronage.  Bro- 
derick, it  was  said,  elected  the  governor,  and  the 
latter  liquidated  the  indebtedness  by  accepting 
many  of  the  former's  recommendations  to  state 
positions. 

This  enabled  him  to  provide  for  a  number  of 
retainers.  In  the  city  likewise  he  would  stipulate 
with  his  party  associates  or  rather  subordinates  for 
a  certain  proportion  of  their  office  employees. 
Thus  from  these  double  sources  he  supplied  sus- 
tenance for  a  number  of  capable  politicians  who 
became  his  devoted  friends  and  partisans. 

Surely  he  needed  friends  to  counterpoise  the 
bitter  enemies  who  daily  augmented.  During  this 

[72] 


Progress 

period  of  his  career  he  displayed  but  little  tact  or 
discretion.  He  was  intolerant,  irritating  and  dog- 
matic. If  one  was  not  with  him,  why  then  one 
was  against  him.  But  later,  when  he  found  the 
steps  he  strove  to  ascend  so  steep  and  slippery, 
he  sought  for  helping  hands  wherever  proffered 
and  asked  and  accepted  assistance  gratefully 
from  whatever  source.  Broderick  has  never  been 
accused  of  personal  jobbery.  His  legislative  repu- 
tation was  unblemished.  He  might  be  quarrel- 
some, vindictive  and  harbor  doubtful  associates, 
but  he  never  descended  to  vulgar  venality.  The 
tribute  he  collected  from  his  official  satellites  was 
disbursed  in  promoting  the  welfare  of  the  party. 
It  was  well  understood  that  his  personal  contribu- 
tion and  expenses  largely  exceeded  his  tithes. 

If  there  was  a  hall  to  be  engaged,  bands  of  music 
to  be  provided,  platforms  to  be  erected,  banners 
to  be  bought,  election  quarters  to  be  taken,  it 
was  to  him  that  they  went  and  he  judged,  selected, 
decided  and  paid.  He  was  omnipresent  and  in- 
defatigable. As  one  of  the  opposing  periodicals 
said:  " Broderick  from  '52  to  '54  was  the  Demo- 
cratic party.  Since  the  organization  of  the  party 
in  California  he  has  been  its  most  active  and 
efficient  member.  His  strong  and  decided  char- 
acter is  known  to  every  one.  Vehement  in  his 
nature,  unbending  in  his  will,  he  has  the  intuitive 
political  sagacity  which  fits  him  for  the  people." 

[73] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

He  required  very  little  personally.  He  neither 
drank,  smoked  nor  gambled,  nor  was  his  name  ever 
associated  with  lewd  women.  He  had  no  vices 
save  one,  ambition  —  if  it  be  a  vice  —  to  seek  to 
govern,  and  that,  like  the  rod  of  Aaron,  consumed 
all  others. 

The  result  of  the  election  in  1853  was  disappoint- 
ing. His  friend  Bigler  was  elected  governor,  but 
the  legislature  was  of  a  doubtful  complexion. 

That  body  assembled  in  Benicia  in  January, 
1854.  The  term  of  Gwin,  one  of  the  senators, 
expired  in  March,  1855,  and  that  of  Weller,  his 
colleague,  in  March,  1857,  two  years  later.  The 
legislature  met  in  January  of  each  year  and  it  was 
the  unviolated  custom  to  elect  the  senator  during 
the  session  immediately  preceding  the  expiration 
of  the  incumbent's  term.  This  was  indeed  the 
purport  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States. 

Gwin's  six  years  expired  in  March,  1855,  so  to 
the  legislature  assembling  in  January,  1855,  for 
they  were  annually  chosen,  would  properly  fall  the 
function  of  selecting  his  successor.  But  Broderick 
from  the  depths  of  his  restless  and  fertile  brain 
'evolved  a  bold,  novel  and  ingenious  project. 

The  legislature  of  1855  would  have  to  be  elected. 
He  did  not  know  how  the  future  would  affect  his 
aspirations.  One  cannot  see  a  day  ahead;  how, 
then,  can  one  prophesy  what  fate  may  bring  in  the 
course  of  a  year?  He  carefully  canvassed  the 

[74] 


Progress 

members  of  the  '54  body,  then  in  session,  and  de- 
cided that  his  chance  for  election  to  the  Senate 
by  them  was  at  least  equal  to  that  of  any  other 
man. 

The  first  movement  was  to  persuade  this  legis- 
lature to  elect  the  senator  themselves  and  for  that 
purpose  a  measure  would  have  to  be  passed  author- 
izing such  action.  So  he  launched  his  revolution- 
ary project,  and  his  partisans  to  a  man  sustained 
the  proposition.  This  is  not  strange  as  we  com- 
mence to  appreciate  his  positive  force,  though  it 
must  have  caused  odd  misgivings  to  some  of  his 
followers.  But  not  one  faltered.  They  closed 
ranks  and  moved  on  the  common  enemy,  for 
every  one  who  was  not  a  Broderickite  came  to- 
gether after  the  first  spasm  of  astonishment  and 
indignation.  It  was  not  then  a  question  of  party. 
It  was  Broderick  and  anti-Broderick. 

Even  the  Whigs,  who  mustered  a  small  number 
of  votes,  took  sides  and  were  by  no  means  unani- 
mous. Of  course,  Gwin  and  Weller,  both  of 
whom  wished  to  retain  their  distinguished  stations, 
united.  They  were  absent  in  Washington,  but 
they  possessed  adroit  and  capable  friends  at 
Benicia.  And  there  were  several  other  gentlemen 
who  had  hopes  and  aspirations.  Broderick  was 
not  the  only  statesman  who  strove  to  mount  the 
capitol  steps.  All  these  combined  formed  a 
phalanx  which,  composed  as  it  was  of  various  and 

[75] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

incongruous  elements,  yet  valiantly  breasted  the 
Broderick  array.  In  the  Assembly  the  measure 
directing  the  legislature  to  elect  a  United  States 
senator  at  the  session  passed,  which  was  a  victory 
for  Broderick.  It  was  different  in  the  Senate. 

In  that  smaller  body  the  aligned  forces  were 
more  equally  matched.  The  Broderick  senators 
were  immovable,  like  Spartans  they  never  changed. 
Nothing  could  alter  their  devotion,  and  to  a  man 
they  never  missed  a  session  during  a  long  two 
months  while  this  bill  was  on  the  table.  Not 
one  was  absent,  and  they  were  ever  at  the  behest 
and  command  of  the  chief  for  any  deed  or  purpose 
looking  to  success. 

But  with  the  opposition  it  was  not  so  unani- 
mous. They  had  several  chiefs  instead  of  one,  and 
had  many  intrigues  of  which  the  Broderick  men 
tried  to  make  capital. 

It  is  related  that  one  of  the  opposition  senators 
was  invited  to  ride  behind  two  fine  horses  driven 
by  a  warm  friend  who  was,  however,  a  Broderick 
partisan.  On  a  level,  pleasant  road  his  friend 
carelessly  drove  into  a  ditch  and  both  were  slightly 
injured.  After  his  return  our  prudent  senator 
reflected,  and  the  more  he  reflected  the  more 
peculiar  he  thought  the  accident.  There  was  to 
be  no  "pairing"  nor  explanations;  if  a  man  was 
not  in  his  seat  his  vote  was  not  counted,  so 
a  very  slight  mishap,  one  that  might  keep  a 

[761 


Progress 

member  to  his  chamber  for  only  a  day,  could  be 
disastrous. 

After  cogitating,  he  arose  like  David  and  went 
forth  to  his  friends,  who  locked  him  in  a  room, 
where  he  was  carefully  guarded  from  intrusion  or 
molestation  until  the  hour  of  voting.  The  result 
was  a  tie,  and  the  lieutenant  governor  cast  his  vote 
affirmatively,  thus  giving  the  measure  a  majority 
of  one.  A  reconsideration  was  moved  and, 
according  to  parliamentary  usage,  the  vote  would 
have  to  be  confirmed  at  the  next  session. 

The  Santa  Clara  senator  was  named  Grewell. 
He  had  been  a  minister.  That  he  was  also 
vacillating  and  impressionable  became,  to  state 
it  moderately,  quite  clear.  He  was  a  Whig  and 
from  character  and  associations  would  be  naturally 
anti-Broderick.  He  was,  therefore,  ranked  with 
the  allies  and  had  hitherto  supported  them. 

But  the  Broderick  people  were  vigilant  and 
sleepless.  Every  senator  opposed  was  taken  to 
the  summit  of  the  Mount  and  there  proffered  the 
earth  and  all  contained  therein,  as  a  recruit  for 
the  standard.  One  of  the  most  fervent  of  the 
Broderick  contingent,  the  leading  banker  of  San 
Francisco,  had  several  private  interviews  with 
Grewell.  No  matter  how  carefully  concealed,  very 
little  was  done  on  one  side  that  was  not  known  to 
the  other.  The  allies  reflected. 

Like  the  boatman  in  Dumas'  novel,  who  had 
[771 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

conversed  with  " milady"  and  therefore  was  no 
longer  safe,  Grewell  had  met  the  banker  and  there- 
fore required  surveillance.  He  lived  in  San  Jose", 
fifty  miles  away.  A  mounted  rider  was  sent  on 
relays  of  speedy  steeds  to  that  place.  The  rider 
arrived  at  midnight  in  a  pitiless  storm,  delaying 
en  route  only  to  remount.  He  brought  a  letter 
to  the  self-appointed  anti-Broderick  guardian  of 
Grewell.  The  latter  was  awakened,  placed  in  a 
carriage  and  driven  towards  Sacramento.  Half 
way  he  met  another  agent,  who  received  the  con- 
signment from  the  San  Jose"  cerberus  and  conveyed 
it  safely  to  the  headquarters  of  the  allies.  But  the 
persuasive  eloquence  of  the  banker  was  yet  potent, 
for  Grewell,  when  momentarily  unobserved,  es- 
caped from  his  captors  and  rushed  to  the  realms 
of  the  enemy,  by  whom  he  was  comforted,  cherished 
and  confined. 

These  events  had  occupied  several  days  and 
they  included  the  unavailing  pursuit  of  the  allied 
Grewell  cavalcade  by  Broderick  forces,  who  as- 
certained too  late  the  cause  of  his  sudden  and 
mysterious  disappearance  from  San  Jose". 

Grewell  was  kept  like  a  precious  jewel  all  that 
Sunday  in  the  Broderick  refuge  for  the  repentant, 
and  on  Monday  when  the  session  opened  he  ap- 
peared in  his  seat  and  voted  affirmatively,  thus 
causing  a  tie.  But,  as  Paul  Jones  said,  the  fight 
was  only  begun.  Both  sides  possessed  champions 

[78] 


Progress 

of  resource,  artifice  and  enterprise,  and  the  allies 
well  knew  that  if  they  could  recapture  Grewell 
his  uncertain  temperament  might  again  be  made 
to  change.  They  sent  out  scouts  who,  after  quiet 
but  skilful  researches  over  the  length  and  breadth 
of  the  town,  located  the  apartment  wherein  he  was 
harbored  and  guarded  by  a  faithful  henchman  of 
Broderick.  But  the  faithful  one  was  known  to 
be  quite  susceptible  to  agreeable  beverages.  He 
was  liberally  and  quite  unsuspectingly  supplied  by 
a  friend  who  represented  the  allies. 

There  seem  to  have  been  rapid  conversions  in 
those  delectable  days.  At  the  midnight  hour,  in 
stocking  feet  and  pistol  in  hand,  the  latest  friend 
stealthily  opened  the  door  of  the  chamber  where 
Grewell  and  his  guileless  guardian  slept.  The 
latter  still  slumbered  heavily,  but  Grewell  was 
quietly  awakened,  told  to  arise  and  go  forth.  He 
did  as  bidden,  and  after  a  tender  and  interesting 
conference  with  the  Whig  leader,  he  entered  the 
Senate  at  the  next  session  and  coolly  reversed  his 
vote  of  the  previous  day,  ascribing  his  altered 
attitude  to  " telegraphic  despatches"  from  his 
constituents. 

Of  such  was  the  nature  of  California  legislatures 
even  five  decades  ago.  The  changing  of  Gre well's 
vote  caused  the  failure  of  the  measure  and  annihi- 
lated the  darling  ambition  of  Broderick  for  the 
time.  But,  though  beaten,  he  had  defied  and 

[79] 


The  Life  of  David  C  Broderick 

fought  aU  erf  whatever  rank  oar  party  were  allied 
against  him,  and  was  defeated  only  then  by  the 
relapse  of  a  traitor.  I  think  it  was  Dean  Rich- 
mond who  drank  a  toast  to  "the  damned  rascal 
who  wfll  stay  bought/"  I  do  not  mean  to  ttair 
that  Grewefl  had  been  corrupted,  but  a  man 
who  so  shamelessly  and  braaenry  reversed  his 
action  over  night  subjects  his  conduct  to  the 
worst  inferences. 

Aiming  those  who  stood  forward  as  champions 
of  Broderick  were  two  men  who  afterwards  became 
celebrated  in  other  places.  One  was  Stephen  J. 
Field,  for  thirty-five  years  a  justice  of  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court.  The  second  was  William 
Walker,  who,  a  year  or  two  afterwards,  endeavored 
to  subjugate  one  of  the  Central  American  States* 
but  with  different  success, 


for  the  one  was  **a™M*A  and  the  other  shot. 
California  was  then  the  home  of  the  world's  choice 
spirits.  The  courage  and  hardihood  which  trans- 
ported them  in  safety  from  remote  distances  to 
this  unknown  land  still  wrought  fike  an  Homeric 
legend  and  built  from  nothing  this  unique  factor 
of  the  American  structure. 

I  cannot  discover  in  this  initial  tiMnttat  for  the 
throne  a  division  of  forces  on  sectional  or  racial 
fines.  It  was  simply  Broderick  and  anti-Broder- 
ick.  The  Northern  and  Southern  alignment  did 
not  appear  so  strongly  until  some  years  later  when 

[80] 


Progress 

Broderick  was  a  senator  and  discussed  the  national 
issues  that  led  to  the  Civil  War. 

Broderick' s  supporters  comprised  a  number  of 
the  most  ardent  Southerners,  and  among  his  most 
envenomed  opponents  were  several  New  Yorkers. 
The  conflict  was  waged  then  and  for  three  years 
more,  until  his  ultimate  success  revolved  around 
his  individual  personality.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  he  was  not  the  only  person  that  wished  to  be 
senator,  and  all  these  of  course  opposed  his  aspira- 
tions. It  was  one  against  all  and  all  against  one. 
He  openly  avowed  his  candidacy  and  frankly  said 
that  those  who  would  not  assist  him  he  would 
regard  as  enemies.  Therefore  it  can  easily  be 
understood  that  what  supporters  he  had  would 
follow  him  forever.  After  this  struggle  there 
would  be  no  traitors,  and  there  were  none.  Once 
a  Broderick  man  always  a  Broderick  man  — 
against  the  world.  Yet  his  imperiousness  annoyed 
and  irritated  his  adherents,  and  his  lack  of  mental 
equipoise  lost  associates.  He  was  reproached  for 
not  taking  counsel  with  his  friends.  He  said:  "I 
do,  but  I  do  not  let  them  control.  A  leader  must 
lead  even  if  he  commits  errors.  Men  will  follow 
the  man  who  decides  and  acts  while  others  are  tem- 
porizing. My  goal  is  the  Senate,  and  I  will  arrive, 
if  living.  Why,"  he  added,  "  to  sit  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States  as  a  senator  for  one  day,  I  would 
consent  to  be  roasted  in  a  slow  fire  on  the  plaza." 

[81] 


CHAPTER  V 

CONFLICT 

HE  state  legislature  of  1854  ended  its  days 
-••  in  March  of  the  same  year.  The  state 
Democratic  convention  assembled  in  July,  1854, 
at  Sacramento  to  nominate  candidates  for  various 
offices,  the  election  to  be  held  in  the  autumn. 
The  Broderick  feud  had  become,  by  now,  the  web 
and  warp  and  woof  of  the  land.  It  entered  into 
every  county,  every  town,  every  miners'  camp. 
From  the  base  of  Mount  Shasta,  whose  summit, 
lifted  high,  eternally  guarded  its  white  cerement, 
to  the  sea-bound  cypresses  of  Monterey,  Cali- 
fornia was  divided.  Several  counties  held  Broder- 
ick and  anti-Broderick  local  meetings  and  elected 
contesting  delegations  to  the  state  convention. 
The  prevailing  custom  did  not  permit  delegations 
from  districts  which  were  divided  to  participate 
in  the  first  deliberations  of  the  convention. 
Only  those  whose  seats  were  not  disputed  pos- 
sessed that  privilege.  Even  San  Francisco,  where 
Broderick  had  hitherto  reigned  with  a  level  hand, 
sent  an  opposing  delegation,  whose  claims  must 
be  decided  by  the  convention  and  pending  which 
the  members  of  neither  faction  could  vote.  How- 
ever Broderick  himself,  as  chairman  of  the  state 

[821 


Conflict 

committee,  would  preside  at  the  first  session  and 
entertain  preliminary  motions. 

Large  halls  were  scarce  and  a  church  was  chosen. 
The  Broderick  men  were  allowed  ingress  by  a 
small  side  door  prior  to  the  appointed  moment, 
so  that  they  might  occupy  the  best  seats  in  front. 
The  strategem  availed  little,  however,  for  the  op- 
posing forces,  as  soon  as  the  broad  doors  leading 
into  the  sacred  edifice  were  thrown  apart,  rushed 
in,  and  passing  rapidly  down  the  auditorium, 
forced  their  way  bodily  to  the  foot  of  the  pulpit, 
where  stood  Broderick.  After  the  tumult  had 
partially  ceased  he  addressed  the  body,  declaring 
the  convention  open  and  inviting  proposals  for 
a  temporary  presiding  officer.  Two  men  arose 
simultaneously,  one  of  them  suggesting  a  partisan 
and  the  other  an  opponent  of  Broderick  for  the 
position.  Broderick  recognized  his  adherent,  put 
his  motion  and  declared  Judge  Edward  McGowan 
chosen  chairman.  But  the  others  were  clamoring 
for  recognition,  which  he  declined,  declaring  his 
duty  fulfilled.  Thereupon,  one  of  his  enemies, 
from  the  body  of  the  church,  offered  a  resolution 
and,  after  a  pandemonium  of  affirmatives,  an- 
nounced that  Governor  McDougall  had  been  also 
duly  elected  chairman. 

Thirty  resolute  men,  armed  with  knives,  der- 
ringers and  revolvers,  surrounded  and  escorted 
McDougall  to  the  platform  near  the  pulpit  and 

[831 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

seated  him  in  a  chair,  whilst  McGowan  confronted 
him  from  another.  Distinguished  among  the  fore- 
most of  the  thirty  by  his  tall,  slender,  straight- 
backed  figure  and  steady  poise  stood  David  S. 
Terry. 

Pistols  were  uncovered,  bowie  knives  glittered; 
every  man  in  the  church  was  alert  and  intense. 
Only  a  miracle  prevented  a  massacre.  In  that 
confined  area  each  bullet  would  find  a  victim.  A 
revolver  in  the  hands  of  a  nervous  delegate  was 
accidentally  discharged  and  both  factions  only 
hesitated  to  learn  who  had  shot,  whilst  a  few  pru- 
dent warriors  instantly  vaulted  through  stained- 
glass  windows,  bearing  with  them  the  image  of 
God.  Broderick  himself  displayed  in  this  fearful 
hour  rare  tact,  courage  and  moderation.  A  person 
noted  more  for  his  skill  as  a  scribe  than  as  a  marks- 
man, and  who  many  years  after  constituted  himself 
Broderick' s  by  no  means  profound  or  impartial 
biographer,  excitedly  drew  a  revolver  and  with 
trembling  hand  brandished  it  before  Broderick's 
face.  "Take  care,"  said  the  latter,  "take  care; 
that  might  go  off  and  you  may  hurt  some  one," 
and  very  deliberately  (he  seems  never  to  hurry)  he 
leaned  forward,  wrested  the  weapon  from  the 
palsied  grasp  and  carefully  laid  it  on  the  table. 

Nevertheless,  the  angry,  tenacious,  tumultuous 
throng  remained  in  violent  conclave  for  five  hours, 
disdaining  fruitless  efforts  to  harmonize.  Neither 

[84] 


Conflict 

wing  would  tolerate  speeches  by  their  opponents. 
Governor  Bigler,  a  Broderick  adherant,  was  hooted 
and  forced  from  the  pulpit  platform,  while  the 
leading  men  of  the  allies  were  served  no  better. 
The  two  chairmen  sat  side  by  side  quite  helpless 
in  the  uproar  and  darkness,  which  now  came  on, 
for  the  pastor,  after  vainly  imploring  them  to 
vacate  and  not  stain  the  house  of  God  with  hot, 
sinful  blood,  refused  lamps  and  they  were  perforce 
content  with  two  dip  candles  placed  on  the  top  of 
the  pulpit.  For  one  side  to  adjourn  first  was  to 
confess  defeat  and  grant  to  the  other,  perhaps, 
nominal  claims  of  legality.  Finally,  a  compro- 
mise was  effected  and  the  two  chairmen,  with 
locked  arms,  descended  from  the  platform,  pro- 
ceeded down  the  aisle  and  out  into  the  world, 
followed  by  the  whole  convention  in  the  same 
equitable  manner. 

The  following  day  the  Broderick  battalion  and 
their  opponents  met  separately.  Several  fruitless 
and  half-hearted  attempts  at  compromise  were 
offered,  but  little  disposition  to  unite  was  evinced. 
Like  Orlando  they  were  content  to  be  better  stran- 
gers. In  this  mood  each  body  selected  different 
candidates  for  the  ensuing  election  and  dissolved. 
The  Whigs,  chastened  by  defeat  and  encouraged 
by  the  venomous  division  in  the  ranks  of  their 
enemies,  put  forth  an  admirable  ticket.  This 
party,  though  always  in  the  minority  in  Call- 
[851 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

fornia,  embraced  a  number  of  the  most  reputable 
and  conservative  citizens,  many  of  whom,  as  mem- 
bers of  the  Republican  party,  rose  later  to  high 
distinction  in  the  counsels  of  the  state  and  nation. 
The  Democrats,  fortified  by  the  federal  power, 
patronage  and  forty  years  of  national  administra- 
tion, although  divided,  like  the  Corsicans  they 
were,  still  conquered.  The  anti-Broderick  candi- 
dates alone  received  a  larger  vote  than  the  Whigs. 
The  Broderick  ticket  was  badly  defeated,  but  with 
his  usual  careful  and  intelligent  combinations, 
Broderick,  to  whom  the  legislature  was  everything 
the  rest  nothing,  had  made  such  conditions  and 
exchanges  for  county  offices  with  both  Whigs  and 
any  or  all  other  adversaries  that  his  contingent 
in  the  legislature  was  more  numerous  than  the 
average  vote  of  his  factions  warranted. 

During  election  day  he  was  at  the  polls  in  one 
of  the  San  Francisco  districts.  Disputes  were 
frequent  and  the  feud  vigorous  and  vindictive  be- 
tween the  contending  Democrats.  Colonel  Bailie 
Peyton  confronted  Broderick  and  a  violent  alter- 
cation ensued  over  the  ballots.  Peyton  thrust  his 
hand  in  his  hip  pocket  and  the  handle  of  a  pistol 
appeared.  But  Broderick,  who  had  his  right  hand 
in  his  trousers'  pocket,  exclaimed  coldly  and 
deliberately:  "Move,  Colonel  Peyton,  and  you 
are  a  dead  man."  Peyton  then  knew  that  Bro- 
derick had  his  hand  on  a  derringer  which  carried 

[86] 


Conflict 

an  ounce  bullet,  and  which  was  small  enough  to  be 
fired  from  his  pocket  without  drawing  —  a  most 
deadly  weapon  in  a  street  brawl.  Peyton  stood 
motionless  until  Broderick  said:  " There  is  no 
need  for  us  to  kill  each  other  or  to  have  a  personal 
difficulty.  Let  us  take  a  boat  on  the  bay  or  a 
walk  under  the  trees  and  talk  over  this  matter. 
If  we  cannot  agree  then  I  am  ready  to  fight  to  the 
death  or  to  any  extent  that  you  may  elect." 
Peyton  consented  and  a  few  minutes'  conversation 
apart  made  them  both  lifelong  friends. 

A  friend  complained  to  Broderick  of  turbulent 
characters  who  assisted  him  in  elections,  but 
Broderick  replied:  "You  respectable  people  I 
cannot  depend  on.  You  won't  go  down  and  face 
the  revolvers  of  those  fellows,  and  I  have  to  take 
such  material  as  I  can  get  hold  of.  They  stuff 
ballot-boxes  and  steal  the  tally  lists,  and  I  have  to 
keep  these  men  to  aid  me." 

On  another  occasion  Broderick  was  walking  one 
dark,  rainy  evening  in  a  street  when  a  person 
coming  up  behind  and  mistaking  him  for  a  friend, 
gave  him  a  gentle  push.  The  street  was  slippery, 
and  the  gentle  push  landed  Broderick  in  no  very 
gentle  manner  in  the  mud.  He  turned  angrily 
and  saw  one  of  his  most  inveterate  antagonists. 
"Oh!"  said  this  startled  personage,  "I  —  I  — 
thought  it  was  Benham."  "I  wish  to  heaven  it 
was, ' '  grunted  Broderick.  The  humor  of  it  appealed 

[87] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

to  both.  They  laughed,  shook  hands  and  ever  after 
entertained  personal  if  not  political  amity.  This 
little  anecdote  is  trifling,  but  it  serves  to  illustrate 
the  milder  degree  of  his  character.  As  Plutarch 
says,  "One's  lighter  and  unstudied  actions  hold 
a  clearer  mirror  to  the  world." 

When  the  legislature  met  in  January,  1855,  it 
was  very  soon  ascertained  that  no  person  could 
command  a  majority  of  the  legislature  for  United 
States  senator.  The  strongest  candidate  was 
Senator  Gwin,  whose  term  expired  in  the  following 
March,  but  his  forces  were  not  so  numerous  as 
Broderick's. 

While  Broderick  and  Gwin  were  the  principal 
contestants  there  were  other  men  who  would  will- 
ingly wear  the  toga,  and  each  possessed  a  certain 
number  of  adherents  in  the  legislature. 

These  gentlemen  at  the  previous  session  were 
all  united  with  Gwin  against  Broderick.  Now 
with  the  utmost  sincerity  and  cynical  frankness 
they  united  with  Broderick  against  Gwin.  There 
is  nothing  better  than  modern  Republican  politics 
to  illustrate  the  independence,  as  well  as  the 
selfishness,  of  our  school.  After  all,  happiness 
consists  in  pleasing  one's  self,  in  pleasing  one's 
self  one  may  displease  others,  therefore,  happiness 
is  selfishness.  And  so  if  the  recalcitrants  were 
vilified  by  the  Gwin  advocates,  were  they  not 
justified?  Winston  Churchill  relates  in  the  life 

[88] 


Conflict 

of  his  father  that  Lord  Randolph,  after  assisting 
the  Irish  party,  in  the  exigencies  of  time  found  his 
friends  were  on  the  other  side.  So  he  said  to 
Parnell:  "I've  done,  as  you  know,  all  I  could  for 
you.  Now,  of  course,  I'll  do  all  I  can  against  you." 
This  legislative  coalition,  guided  by  the  clear 
brain  of  Broderick,  easily  foiled  all  the  efforts  of 
the  rest  of  the  Democrats  to  enter  a  caucus,  in 
which  the  decision  of  the  majority  would  be  bind- 
ing. The  Whigs,  who  were  less  numerous  than 
the  combined  Democrats,  were  quite  ready  to  do 
nothing  towards  the  election,  as  the  choice  could 
not  fall  upon  a  Whig,  and  so  the  session  vacuously 
ended.  Gwin's  seat  in  the  Senate  remained  un- 
tenanted,  and  California  possessed  only  Weller  to 
give  it  voice  in  that  august  body.  During  this 
session  of  the  California  legislature  and  the  one 
preceding,  Gwin  was  absent  in  Washington. 
Congress  sat  coincidently  with  the  California 
body,  and  it  was  not  then  considered  American 
or  patriotic  for  a  senator  to  desert  Congress  while 
in  session,  to  go  home  and  re-elect  himself.  Dis- 
tant as  Washington  was  from  Sacramento,  Gwin's 
personal  management  of  his  campaign  was  made 
still  more  difficult.  Neither  telegraphs  nor  rail- 
ways existed  in  the  far  West,  and  the  shortest 
time  by  way  of  steamer  to  Panama,  thence  by 
rail  sixty  miles  to  Aspinwall,  and  thence  by 
steamer  to  New  York,  was  thirty  days. 
[89] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

I  do  not  find,  in  a  close  study  of  this  period, 
that  any  special  antagonism  existed  between  Gwin 
and  Broderick.  The  latter  was  a  candidate  for 
the  senatorship,  resolute  and  immovable,  confront- 
ing the  world  in  his  determination  to  win.  All  who 
did  not  aid  his  upward  course  were  enemies,  though 
he  was  too  clever  a  statesman  to  refuse  or  decline 
tangible  assistance  from  any  source.  He  was 
always  ready  for  a  bargain,  and  in  the  political 
trades  of  the  day  he  was  seldom  worsted.  He  was 
by  far  more  successful  with  individuals  than  with 
the  public  at  large.  His  positive,  unyielding  person- 
ality impressed  his  associates,  but  this  brusqueness 
did  not  augment  his  popularity  with  the  people. 

Gwin  had  been  a  federal  official  in  Mississippi 
and  came,  like  others,  seeking  his  fortune.  He 
arrived  the  same  month  as  Broderick  and  with 
the  same  purpose:  to  return  as  United  States 
senator  from  California.  And,  as  a  singular  coin- 
cidence, before  leaving  Washington,  he  bade  fare- 
well to  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  saying,  "I  leave  for 
California  tomorrow.  It  will  become  a  state,  and 
I  shall  be  back  in  a  year  bearing  my  credentials  as 
United  States  senator."  And  he  was.  Broderick 
said  to  Sickles  what  Gwin  repeated  to  Douglas  a 
month  later.  The  one  from  the  North,  the  other 
from  the  South.  Both  fulfilled  their  prophecies 
and  the  career  of  each  was  equally  weird  and 
romantic. 

[90] 


Conflict 

Of  stately  presence,  over  six  feet,  with  agree- 
able mien,  Gwin  possessed  the  courtly  manners  of 
a  Southern  gentleman.  Those  things  counted  for 
more  at  that  time  than  today.  Education,  family, 
personal  associations  and  surroundings  had  more 
weight  and  consideration.  Possibly  now  it  is 
more  the  man  himself,  not  his  ancestors  or  friends 
or  religion,  but  himself.  Sons  of  senators  be- 
come employees  in  department  stores,  and  railway 
conductors,  sons  of  artisans  and  tradesmen  become 
senators. 

Gwin  was  chosen  a  San  Francisco  representa- 
tive to  the  body  that  framed  the  constitution  of 
the  state  at  Monterey  in  October,  1849,  and  the 
ensuing  legislature  selected  him  and  Fremont  as 
the  two  senators.  He  seems  to  have  been  easily 
first  and  obtained  the  coveted  distinction  without 
envy  or  rivalry.  By  allotment  his  term  expired 
in  March,  1855,  and  the  adjournment  of  the  legis- 
lature without  choosing  his  successor  left  him 
officeless.  During  these  several  years,  however, 
he  had,  with  great  diligence  and  industry,  filled 
the  more  important  federal  offices  in  the  state 
with  his  personal  adherents  from  the  South. 

His  colleague  Weller,  chosen  to  succeed  Fre*- 
mont  in  1851,  had  not  an  equal  influence  or 
ascendancy  in  Washington.  He  was  a  Northern 
man  and  the  Southern  element  controlled  the 
government.  Gwin's  personal  acquaintance  with 

[911 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

the  brilliant  galaxy  of  Southern  senators  ruling  in 
Washington  added  to  his  power  and  prestige. 
But  he  did  not  exercise  political  prudence  or  wise 
statesmanship.  His  appointees,  to  a  man,  were 
from  one  section.  Postmasters,  port  collectors, 
naval  officers,  appraisers,  federal  attorneys  and 
treasurers,  mint  employees,  revenue  officials, 
lighthouse  keepers  and  inspectors  were  all  from 
the  happy  Southland.  The  San  Francisco  Cus- 
toms was  called  the  "  Virginia  Poor-House."  If 
he  had  been  as  great  a  senator  as  office  philan- 
thropist his  renown  would  be  enduring.  Senator 
Jones  of  Nevada  used  to  say  that  "for  one  friend 
you  make  in  appointments,  you  create  five  ene- 
mies." So,  given  enough  appointments,  and  one's 
enemies  will  surely  overwhelm  one. 

The  ideals  and  struggles  that  culminated  in  the 
Civil  War  were  only  latent  in  California  in  1855, 
but  still  the  complete  predominance  of  the  South- 
ern element  in  office  was  irksome  and  irritating  to 
many  of  the  Northerners,  and  to  none  so  much  as 
to  Broderick,  the  leading  aggressive,  enterprising 
Northerner. 

Gwin  had  also  fought  his  duel  in  recognition 
of  sanctified  precepts.  It  was  hi  1853,  with  an 
ex-member  of  Congress,  McCorkle.  The  duellists 
fought,  armed  with  rifles.  They  stood  back  to 
back  forty  yards  from  each  other  and,  at  the 
command  of  one  of  the  seconds,  wheeled  and  fired. 

[92] 


Conflict 

After  three  exchanges,  in  which  neither  one  was  hit, 
the  combat  ended.  McCorkle  was  little  and  Gwin 
big,  a  fact  that  caused  General  Harry  Worthing- 
ton  to  exclaim,  several  years  afterwards,  when 
requested  by  his  mentor,  Broderick,  to  vote,  as  a 
member  of  the  legislature,  for  McCorkle  for  some 
position:  "Til  do  nothing  of  the  kind.  A  man 
who  couldn't  hit  old  Gwin  at  forty  yards  in 
three  shots  with  a  rifle  isn't  fit  for  any  place 
within  the  gift  of  American  freemen."  Which 
illustrates  the  doubtful  amenities  that  come  with 
the  years. 

In  July,  1855,  the  Democrats,  under  the  immi- 
nent pressure  of  danger,  came  together.  Through 
overtures  made  by  Broderick,  who  could  not  win 
with  his  slender  cohorts,  they  met,  harmonized  and 
nominated  candidates  for  the  autumn  elections. 

But  a  new  contestant  for  political  laurels 
appeared.  Two  principal  political  organizations 
existed  in  the  state,  Democrats  and  Whigs,  the 
former  largely  outnumbering  the  latter.  In  fact, 
the  Whigs  had  never  gained  a  victory.  The  Know- 
Nothing,  or  American  Party  organization,  which 
was  born  in  a  day,  proclaimed  as  its  chief  tenet 
and  doctrine  rescission  of  voting  rights  from  for- 
eigners. It  demanded  that  no  naturalized  citizen 
should  hold  office  and  it  impliedly  proscribed  the 
Roman  Catholic  religion,  whose  adherents  were 
largely  Irish. 

[931 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

It  began  in  the  New  England  States  and  appar- 
ently found  fruitful  soil  for  its  principles  in  Cali- 
fornia. The  new  party  swallowed  the  Whigs  at 
one  mouthful,  and  made  a  second  meal  of  many 
Democrats,  for  the  membership  must  come  from 
the  other  parties,  it  having  no  previous  existence. 
Like  a  besom  or  a  pestilence,  or  a  fire  or  a  si- 
rocco, it  swept  the  state  in  October,  electing  the 
entire  ticket,  including  the  governor  and  a 
majority  of  the  legislature.  All  this,  notwith- 
standing that  their  ticket  was  not  advertised  in 
the  press  or  at  public  meetings  or  placarded 
throughout  the  country. 

Absolutely  no  public  announcement  of  the 
Know-Nothing  candidates  was  made.  Even  on 
election  day  there  were  no  men  at  the  polling 
precincts  distributing  election  ballots  and  advo- 
cating their  choice,  as  was  customary  with  the 
other  parties.  The  candidates  and  proceedings 
were  unknown  as  the  doings  of  the  Druids. 
Whilst  orators  declaimed  over  the  state,  of  the 
benefit  to  the  commonwealth  that  would  follow 
the  adoption  of  the  abstract  and  morbid  doc- 
trines the  Know-Nothing  platform  demanded, 
yet  not  one  avowed  his  candidacy.  It  was  like 
asking  an  army  fight  without  commanders. 
The  able  men  who  hitherto  directed  the  state's 
destinies  realized  that  an  organization  which  pro- 
scribed a  numerous  section  of  American  citizens 

[941 


Conflict 

and  yet  dared  not  avow  its  leadership  could  only 
be  ephemeral. 

Like  Rothschild  with  Napoleon,  they  gave  it 
only  a  hundred  days.  Both  friends  and  enemies 
of  Broderick  joined  the  exotic,  and  the  struggle 
between  them  continued  under  the  new  banner. 
When  the  session  of  1856  opened,  the  Know- 
Nothings  had  a  majority  and  might  therefore 
elect  a  senator.  But  this  majority  included  a 
number  of  former  Democrats  who  still  cherished 
secret  devotion  and  allegiance  to  the  old  party 
that  had  governed  the  nation  so  wisely  these 
many  years.  Few  believed  in  the  permanency 
of  the  new  dogmas.  This  doubt  was  augmented 
by  the  exposure  of  large  and  numerous  defalca- 
tions committed  by  several  of  the  lately  chosen 
state  officials.  It  was  written  that  "they  began 
the  day  after  induction." 

The  conflict  of  1854  had  its  repetition.  The 
struggle  with  Broderick  then  was  to  induce  the 
Senate  and  Assembly  to  meet  in  joint  convention. 
It  was  carried  in  the  Assembly  and  only  lost  in 
the  Senate  by  one  vote,  the  one  vote  that  pre- 
vented him  from  mounting  the  throne  three  years 
earlier  than  he  did.  Now,  in  1856,  Broderick's 
purpose  was  to  prevent  the  Know-Nothing  legis- 
lature from  assembling  in  joint  convention,  and 
again  a  comfortable  majority  existed  in  the 
Assembly  and  a  minute  majority  in  the  Senate. 

[951 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

His  deadly  Democratic  senatorial  opponents 
instructed  all  their  legislative  friends  to  blindly 
obey  the  behests  of  Broderick,  and  then  quietly 
went  about  their  business.  They  knew  by  repeated 
experience  his  pre-eminent  ability  to  handle  con- 
ventions of  this  character.  And  again  I  must  add 
that  Gwin  was  not  his  only  rival  and  therefore  ally. 

Latham  and  McDougall  were  distinctly  recog- 
nized as  men  of  strength.  Both  had  been  mem- 
bers of  the  House  of  Representatives,  both  had 
served  the  state  well  and  both  brooked  no  one's 
patronage  or  suzerainty.  After  Broderick's  death 
Latham  became  governor  and  senator,  so  he  was 
made  of  winning  material.  In  the  end  Broderick, 
who  never  left  Sacramento  for  one  single  day  or 
night  during  the  session,  triumphed,  and  the 
legislature  adjourned  for  the  third  time  without 
choosing  a  successor  to  Gwin,  whose  seat  still 
remained  cold. 

Judge  David  S.  Terry,  who,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, was  a  violent  opponent  of  Broderick  in  the 
Democratic  convention  of  the  preceding  year, 
renounced  his  early  beliefs  and  joined  the  Know- 
Nothings.  His  reward,  in  the  variegated  wave 
that  swept  them  on  the  sands  of  success,  was 
election  to  the  important  and  dignified  position 
of  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  state 
of  California.  He  assumed  the  ermine  on  Janu- 
ary 1,  1856,  the  term  being  for  four  years. 

[96] 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE    COMMITTEE    OF    VIGILANCE 

law  of  nature,  the  primordial  law  which 
precedes  civil  law  and  civilization,  is  the  law 
of  self-preservation.  A  community  or  a  nation 
attacked  defends  itself.  Why  not  a  man?  And 
if  it  comes  to  killing,  why  not  kill  rather  than  be 
killed?  When  the  constituted  tribunals  of  a  land 
fail  or  neglect  to  fulfil  or  accomplish  the  purpose 
for  which  they  were  created,  society  is  resolved 
into  its  first  elements  and  some  new  method  must 
be  adopted  to  preserve  its  existence. 

Opinions  may  vary  as  to  the  special  occasion, 
epoch  or  necessity  when  the  ordinary  processes 
of  justice,  when  formal  law  and  legal  courts  be- 
come incompetent  and  inoperative  and  when  a 
community  is  warranted  in  adopting  novel  and  ex- 
traordinary measures  for  its  safety  and  the  safety 
of  its  units,  but  that  that  right  exists,  though 
dormant,  is  established  by  the  love  of  life  and  the 
right  to  live.  What  civilized  nation  exists  today 
that  did  not  commence  its  history  with  violence 
and  the  overthrow  of  settled  customs  and  ordi- 
nances? What  one  so  wise  and  sedate  as  to  be 
content  to  mark  time?  That  comes  with  age. 
But  youth  is  turbulent,  unruly  and  careless. 
[97] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

And  this  abundant  and  abounding  youth  far  away 
in  distant  California  chafed  under  ancient  fetters 
and  harked  back  to  the  savage  days  when  men,  like 
animals,  fought  and  slew  for  very  love  of  blood. 

A  promiscuous  habit  of  carrying  weapons  in- 
creased this  tendency.  When  D'Artagnan  and 
his  compeers  wore  swords  daily  combats  were  the 
mode,  and  the  Californian  with  revolver  at  the 
belt  was  ever  prepared  with  a  quick  eye  and  ready 
finger. 

In  the  beginning  there  were  no  laws,  and  later 
those  chosen  as  legal  expounders  were  often  venal 
and  inefficient.  In  early  mining  camps  every  one 
except  the  gamblers  labored  more  or  less  diligently 
in  actually  excavating  for  gold,  and  seldom  was 
an  occurrence  so  grave  as  to  require  a  legal  tribu- 
nal and  advocates.  Some  elderly  personage  was 
usually  selected  as  alcalde,  a  species  of  govern- 
ing official,  but  his  duties  were  not  onerous.  The 
gambler's  toil  began  with  eventide,  but  if  not 
deemed  an  honest  gamester,  for  it  seems  there 
were  such,  he  was  told  by  the  alcalde  to  leave,  and 
he  went. 

Those  first  three  years  in  the  gold  regions,  from 
'48  to  '51,  were  Arcadian.  The  best,  most  capable 
and  most  intelligent  young  men  of  the  world 
labored  skilfully  and  patiently  in  the  building  of 
the  state,  but  in  San  Francisco,  the  heart  of  this 
western  world,  the  years  brought  changes  for 

[98] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

the  worse.  The  British  had  established  a  penal 
colony  in  Australia,  to  which  they  sent  felons  from 
home.  In  time  the  sentences  of  many  convicts 
terminated  and  others  were  granted  tickets  of 
leave.  It  was  much  easier  and  shorter  to  sail 
from  Botany  Bay  to  San  Francisco  than  to  the 
old  country,  and  then  there  was  the  lure  of  gold. 
These  gentry  descended  on  the  town  like  vampires 
and  found  congenial  associates  in  various  members 
of  the  Latin  race  from  Mexico  and  South  America. 

Robbery  and  assassination  prospered.  Arson 
was  aristocratic.  Several  of  the  large  fires  that 
devastated  the  city  during  this  epoch  were  as- 
cribed to  incendiarism.  The  courts  —  well,  the 
courts  and  lawyers  helped  to  protect,  not  to 
punish,  vice.  Besides,  the  prison  was  insecure 
and  inadequate,  and  the  police  few  and  incapable. 
These  misfortunes  are  perhaps  unavoidable  in 
new  communities,  where  no  one  admits  a  master, 
but  yet  is  so  only  with  us  Americans.  It  was  not 
thus  with  the  British,  either  in  Australia  or  in 
the  Klondike.  We  have  the  same  laws,  but  with 
us  the  tribunals  are  superior  to  them;  with  the 
British  the  tribunals  obey  the  laws  and  do  not 
override  them. 

The  citizens  of  San  Francisco,  foreseeing  anarchy 
and  pillage,  determined  on  a  very  grave  and  seri- 
ous innovation,  which  was,  to  supersede  the  im- 
becile courts,  execute  the  criminal  laws  themselves 

[99] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

and  practise  terrible  experiments  in  the  punish- 
ment of  assassins.  In  June,  1851,  a  certain  num- 
ber of  merchants,  always  the  backbone  of  the 
town,  banded  together  and  evolved  an  organiza- 
tion which  was  called  the  Committee  of  Vigilance, 
the  first,  I  believe,  ever  invoked  in  an  Anglo- 
Saxon  community  to  protect  life  and  property 
whilst  the  law  was  perishing.  This  is  the  begin- 
ning of  their  declaration: 

"  Whereas,  it  has  become  apparent  to  the  citi- 
zens of  San  Francisco  that  there  is  no  security 
for  life  and  property,  either  under  the  regulations 
of  society,  as  it  at  present  exists,  or  under  the  law, 
as  now  administered; 

"  Therefore,  the  citizens  whose  names  are  here- 
unto attached  do  unite  themselves  into  an  associa- 
tion for  the  maintenance  of  the  peace  and  good 
order  of  society  and  the  preservation  of  the  lives 
and  property  of  the  citizens  of  San  Francisco,  and 
do  bind  themselves,  each  unto  the  other,  to  do  and 
perform  every  lawful  act  for  the  maintenance  of 
law  and  order  and  to  sustain  the  laws  when  faith- 
fully and  properly  administered;  but  we  are  de- 
termined that  no  burglar,  incendiary  or  assassin 
shall  escape  punishment,  either  by  the  quibbles  of 
the  law,  the  insecurity  of  prisons,  the  carelessness 
or  corruption  of  the  police  or  laxity  of  those  who 
pretend  to  administer  justice.  And  to  secure  the 
objects  of  this  association  we  do  hereby  agree: 
[100] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

"That  the  name  and  style  of  the  association 
shall  be  the  Committee  of  Vigilance,  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  lives  and  property  of  the  citizens 
and  residents  of  the  city  of  San  Francisco." 

These  brave  words  somehow  recall  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence.  There  were  other  provisions 
providing  for  rooms,  organization,  equipment 
and  sustenance,  inviting  every  respectable  and 
approved  citizen  to  become  a  member,  and  finally 
averring  that  the  action  of  a  majority  of  the 
committee  should  be  binding  upon  all,  and 
pledging  unqualified  support  to  the  committee 
"at  the  hazard  of  their  lives  and  fortunes." 
Within  a  week  a  "Sydney  Cove"  was  captured 
in  the  commission  of  a  felony. 

He  was  tried  in  the  rooms  of  the  committee  by 
a  jury  and  judge  fashioned  from  their  own  mem- 
bership. He  was  allowed  an  attorney,  the  right 
to  testify  and  to  call  witnesses.  The  jury  of 
sixty  found  him  guilty,  sentenced  him  to  death 
and  he  was  hanged  two  hours  later  on  the  plaza, 
in  the  presence  of  the  whole  town. 

A  month  afterward  they  hanged  another  ex- 
convict  from  Australia  who  had  committed  and 
confessed  to  many  murders.  He  was  executed  at 
the  foot  of  Market  Street  on  the  stroke  of  twelve, 
the  Vigilantes  forming  an  armed  escort  of  a 
thousand  stern  and  just  judges.  In  August  two 
more  malefactors,  who  had  confessed,  were  sus- 
[1011 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

pended  by  the  neck  at  the  corner  of  Battery  and 
Bush  Streets,  in  full  view  of  thousands,  whose 
somber  silence  and  fixed,  resolute  mien  during  the 
deliberate  preparations  for  the  execution  appalled 
an  English  wanderer.  He  said  they  did  not 
seem  like  men,  but  judges  sent  by  Osiris  from  the 
nether  world,  so  stern  and  implacable  was  their 
expression. 

Thus  four  were  put  to  death,  but  only  for  crimes 
committed  after  the  committee's  organization. 
They  let  the  law  deal,  if  it  would,  with  the  many 
untried  criminals  in  the  jails  before  their  appear- 
ance, but  they  were  unyielding  in  punishing,  if 
they  could  not  prevent,  the  commission  of  crimes 
during  their  existence.  The  muncipal  officials  did 
nothing;  they  were  helpless,  and  no  one  either 
pitied  or  trusted  them,  for  justice  never  cleansed 
their  venal  hands. 

In  August,  before  the  last  hangings,  the  gov- 
ernor of  the  state  issued  a  proclamation  asking  all 
good  citizens  to  sustain  public  law  and  tranquillity, 
aid  public  officers  in  discharge  of  their  duty  and 
to  discontinue  any  attempt  to  substitute  the 
despotic  control  of  a  self-constituted  association, 
unknown  and  acting  in  defiance  of  the  laws,  in 
place  of  the  regularly  organized  government  of 
the  country. 

To  this  the  Vigilantes  replied:  "We,  the  under- 
signed, do  hereby  aver  that  the  present  Governor 
[102] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

McDougall  asked  to  be  introduced  to  the  executive 
committee  of  the  Committee  of  Vigilance,  which 
was  allowed  and  an  hour  fixed.  The  governor, 
upon  being  introduced,  stated  that  he  approved 
the  acts  of  the  committee,  and  that  much  good 
had  taken  place.  He  hoped  that  they  would  go 
on  and  endeavor  to  act  in  concert  with  the  author- 
ities, and  in  case  any  judges  were  guilty  of  mal- 
administration to  hang  them  and  he  would  appoint 
others."  There  was  a  governor! 

Hang  the  judges!  But  that  millennium  has  not 
even  yet  arrived.  His  proclamation  was  neces- 
sary, as  head  of  the  state,  but  there  was  no  question 
of  his  sympathies  and  convictions  as  a  citizen  of 
the  commonwealth.  Their  work  was  done.  Not 
a  killing,  save  those  for  which  they  hanged  the 
killers,  had  occurred  in  three  months  in  the  city. 

Many  rascals  had  fled  the  town,  some  leaving 
the  state  and  some  going  into  the  interior.  There 
was  less  arson,  less  robbery  and  gambling.  People 
dared  to  walk  the  streets  at  night. 

The  officers  awoke  from  their  lethargy.  Justice 
was  no  longer  blind  or  leaden-heeled.  Trade 
increased  and  new  edifices  multiplied.  The  Vig- 
ilance Committee  of  1851  ceased  to  act,  but 
the  association  never  formally  dissolved.  The 
membership  roster  was  retained  and  the  offi- 
cers guarded  their  designations.  Like  the  sleep- 
ing Swiss,  they  awaited  the  next  call  to  arms, 
[1031 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

which  came  five  years  later.  For,  though  the 
action  of  the  Vigilantes  rendered  criminals  less 
popular  for  a  period,  the  old  conditions  began 
presently  to  recur. 

During  the  first  half  of  the  decade  serious  doubts 
as  to  the  permanency  of  the  gold  deposits  existed. 
In  1854  a  marked  diminution  of  the  product 
occurred,  and  properties  of  all  descriptions  declined 
excessively  in  value.  It  was  not  until  the  next 
year,  when  new,  rich  and  large  placers  in  Shasta 
and  Siskiyou  counties  were  unearthed,  that  the 
bird,  Confidence,  returned. 

Miners,  especially,  were  like  Arabs,  roving  from 
gorge  to  gorge,  seeking  more  lucrative  deposits. 
Few  claims  lasted  more  than  a  year  at  best,  and 
then  the  search  for  others  continued.  The  alluvial 
soils  containing  gold  were  quickly  exhausted. 
The  era  of  quartz  mines  and  mills  had  not  yet 
commenced.  Hence  their  relative  permanency 
was  unknown. 

People  wandered,  therefore,  from  one  camp  to 
another,  giving  rise  to  a  turbulent  and  fluctuating 
population.  Possessed  of  no  interest  in  the  soil, 
and  very  often  penniless,  with  a  distant  memory  of 
moral  restraint  and  little  dread  of  the  weak  forces 
of  authority,  they  were  exposed  to  strong  tempta- 
tion. After  the  Thirty  Years'  War  a  large  pro- 
portion of  the  disbanded  soldiery  became  bandits. 
There  was  no  other  similar  occupation. 
[104] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

To  California  in  the  early  years  came  the  cream 
of  the  world,  but  it  was  followed  by  the  dregs  of 
the  world.  Men  whose  careers  were  ended  at 
home,  whose  names  spelled  vice  and  debauchery, 
who  had  run  the  race  and  were  marked  and  known 
in  the  eastern  states  —  in  a  word,  those  whose 
records  were  not  clean  and  whose  hopes  were 
ended  —  came  to  this  alluring  land  on  the  western 
sea  to  forget  and  to  live  anew.  The  newcomer 
was  never  asked  his  name  and  address.  He  told 
what  he  pleased  and  it  was  accepted.  Men  have 
lived  in  partnership  for  months,  digging  the  same 
mine,  living  in  the  same  cabin,  sleeping  in  the 
same  cot  and  finally  separated  without  one  know- 
ing either  the  true  name  or  antecedents  of  the 
other.  It  was  the  way  of  the  mines  and  pleasant, 
genial,  faithful  comradeship  for  the  time.  If 
they  met  again,  why,  well  and  good,  if  not,  the 
parting  had  been  agreeable. 

There  was  another  picture  in  the  state  gallery 
—  the  Saturday  night  and  Sunday  wassail.  Gam- 
blers had  become  an  integral  portion  of  every 
prosperous  mining  hamlet.  With  their  shaven 
faces,  white  linen  and  expensive  jewelry  they 
stood  out  from  the  honest  worker  as  a  wolf  among 
honest  dogs.  Games  of  many  varieties  with 
cards  flourished,  and  the  gamekeeper  was  an 
expert;  otherwise  he  failed  at  his  trade.  All 
labor  in  the  mines  ceased  from  Saturday  afternoon 
[1051 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

to  Monday  morning,  and  the  gold  that  had  been 
mined  during  the  week  was  taken  on  Saturday  to 
the  little  town.  Armed  with  this  universal  weapon 
which  he  had  gathered  from  a  week's  grinding, 
laborious  toil  in  water  and  mud  at  the  bottom 
of  dangerous  shafts  the  happy,  careless,  reckless 
miner  would  meet  the  professional  and  play. 
Drinking,  cursing,  gambling,  kniving,  shooting, 
all  follow  in  normal  sequence.  Sometimes  it  is 
the  gambler,  more  often  the  miner,  for  the  former 
never  drinks  on  duty  and  is  as  ready  with  the 
revolver  as  with  the  cards.  The  miners  always 
devoted  Sundays  to  inquests.  If  it  was  the 
gambler  it  was  "  justifiable  self-defence. "  The 
coroner  took  charge  of  his  effects,  sold  the  card 
paraphernalia  and  retained  the  whole  for  fees  and 
funeral  expenses.  If  it  was  the  miner  the  gambler 
was  sometimes  ordered  out  of  town  and  sometimes 
he  was  hanged.  It  depended  upon  the  mood  of 
the  miners  and  the  standing  of  the  dead  man. 
What  of  the  courts  and  lawyers?  The  judges 
and  satellites  would  be  in  session  at  the  county 
seat  and  the  miners  saved  them  exertion  and  the 
county  expense.  The  gambler  would  repair  to 
another  camp,  but  killing  is  not  a  vocation  to  be 
commended,  for  one  knows  and  remembers.  He 
would  be  shunned,  few  would  pay  tribute  to  his 
talents,  and  he  well  knew  that  in  an  affray  he 
would  be  given  no  chance  unless  he  shot  first. 
[106] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

Yet  he  must  live  and  he  would  not  work.  So 
he  took  to  robbing  cabins,  sluice-boxes  and  stage- 
coaches. The  last  was  the  boldest,  most  dangerous 
and  chivalrous  occupation  of  all  and  commanded 
every  one's  admiration  except  that  of  the  passen- 
gers. For  one  man  to  stop  a  four-horse  coach 
in  the  open,  rob  the  dozen  travellers  —  most  of 
whom  had  revolvers  in  their  belts,  whilst  the  rob- 
ber carried  his  revolver  in  his  hand  —  equalled 
the  exploits  of  England's  most  doughty  highway- 
men. 

Throughout  the  gold  fields  the  Vigilance  Com- 
mittee of  San  Francisco  of  1851  had  followers  and 
exemplars.  Lynch  law  prevailed,  but  the  culprit 
was  always  tried  patiently  and  equitably,  and  was 
hanged  only  when  the  twelve  jurymen,  under 
oath,  as  in  the  rounded  legal  chamber,  so  decided 
and  agreed. 

These  men  said:  " After  all,  what  difference 
exists  between  the  first  trial  by  jury  and  the  lynch 
execution  among  a  colony  of  men  living  far  from 
civilization?  Was  the  peace  of  a  community  of 
honest  men  to  be  disturbed  by  unpunished  crime 
and  bloodshed  when,  from  circumstances,  the 
law  of  their  country  was  unable  to  protect  them?" 
These  and  similar  questions  formed  the  basis  of 
the  argument  in  defence  of  lynch  law  in  the 
mountains.  And  it  must  be  added  that  the  fear 
as  well  as  the  reality  of  lynch  law  was  beneficial. 
[107] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

In  several  localities  public  indignation  was  confined 
to  ordering  unsavory  characters  to  leave  camp  in 
twenty-four  hours,  and  the  command  was  rarely 
disobeyed.  Driven  with  ignominy  from  the  moun- 
tains and  valleys  a  proportion  of  these  wastrels 
drifted  to  the  metropolis,  wicked  with  vile  and 
vicious  thoughts,  engendered  by  their  expulsion. 
They  joined  the  city  bands  of  ruffians  and  marau- 
ders, and  little  by  little  the  old  horrors  of  vio- 
lence, arson,  robberies  and  murders  recommenced. 
Every  morning  there  was  "a  man  for  breakfast." 

The  old  delays,  the  old  tribunals,  perjury,  quib- 
bles and  technical  errors,  corrupt  and  dense  prose- 
cutors; ignorant  and  venal  juries,  misunderstood 
and  misapplied  laws,  life  itself,  and  freedom  again 
to  continue  the  course  of  rapine  and  murder  were 
once  more  the  privileges  of  the  delighted  criminal. 

On  November  18,  1855,  occurred  the  Cora- 
Richardson  affair.  One  must  be  careful  of  the 
dates  in  describing  these  tragedies,  like  those  that 
marked  the  French  Revolution.  Napoleon  always 
said  that  the  eighteenth  Brumaire  was  one  of 
the  most  potential  days  in  his  career.  Cora  and 
Richardson  met  by  hazard  in  a  saloon.  They 
were  presented  to  each  other  and  drank  several 
times  together,  finally  separating  after  a  quarrel, 
in  which  neither  was  blameless,  as  is  usual  when 
Bacchus  intervenes.  The  following  day  they 
again  encountered  one  another  in  the  same  place, 
[1081 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

another  dispute  ensued,  they  went  outside,  scuffled 
and  Cora  shot  Richardson  through  the  heart. 
The  coroner's  jury  —  impanelled  the  next  day  — 
in  session  over  the  dead  body,  in  the  presence  of 
which  they  examined  Cora  and  other  witnesses, 
reported  unanimously  that  Richardson  "was  de- 
prived of  his  life  by  Cora,  and  from  the  facts 
produced  the  jury  believe  that  the  said  act  was 
premeditated  and  that  there  was  nothing  to  miti- 
gate the  same."  Every  juror  signed  this  report. 

General  Richardson  was  a  distinguished  citizen 
of  the  state.  Coming  to  California  in  the  '49 
hegira,  he  had  resided  there  continuously  — 
always  active  in  public  affairs  —  he  was  esteemed 
and  regarded.  When  killed  he  was  United  States 
marshal,  a  promotion  awarded  only  to  the  best. 

Charles  Cora,  an  Italian,  was  a  professional 
gambler  and  consorted  openly  with  the  keeper  of 
a  bagnio.  The  two  men  were  antithetical  in  career 
and  character.  They  represented  two  diverse 
classes  in  the  city,  the  man  and  the  man-killer. 
The  crime  loomed  large  amid  the  conventional 
murders  and  the  whole  town  was  amazed  and 
terrified. 

The  trial  took  place  two  months  later.  Because 
of  the  tense  and  continued  excitement  the  usual 
interminable  delays  were  abridged.  Cora  was 
surrounded  by  the  most  brilliant  array  of  counsel 
that  money  could  hire.  Colonel  E.  D.  Baker  was 
[1091 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

one  of  them.  This  same  Baker,  who  afterward 
pronounced  the  classic  discourse  over  the  slain 
Broderick,  became  senator  from  Oregon  and  died 
facing  the  foe  while  leading  his  men  in  a  thrilling 
charge,  full  against  the  enemy,  at  Ball's  Bluff! 
And  yet  this  same  Baker  defended  Cora,  the 
pander,  the  gambler,  the  deliberate  murderer! 

What  will  not  lawyers  do  for  money?  There 
was  a  veiled,  floating  legend  that  Baker  at  first 
accepted  a  generous  fee  from  the  woman,  and  that, 
shortly  afterward,  recognizing  the  universal  pub- 
lic attention  concentrated  on  the  case  and  the 
obloquy  he  might  encounter,  he  endeavored  to 
withdraw,  but  she  refused  to  take  back  the  money 
and  he  was  compelled  to  continue.  There  was 
another  saying  prevalent  at  the  same  time  that 
a  San  Francisco  advocate  stopped  at  nothing  to 
save  his  criminal  client  except  committing  the 
same  crime. 

The  jury  disagreed  after  forty-one  hours'  con- 
finement and  was  dismissed.  These  are  the  com- 
ments of  a  city  journal  on  the  day  following: 

"Men  were  placed  upon  that  jury  who  should 
never  have  been  there.  They  went  upon  it  hi 
order  to  defeat  the  ends  of  justice;  hi  other  words, 
to  Hie7  the  jury.  This  they  effectually  did.  It 
is  not  pleasant  for  us  to  comment  upon  the  de- 
pravity which  has  been  brought  to  light  in  the 
trial.  It  is  not  very  agreeable  to  state  that  the 
[HO] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

conviction  is  almost  universal  that  crime  cannot 
be  punished  in  San  Francisco. 

"But  it  is,  nevertheless,  a  duty  which  we  owe 
to  the  public  community,  as  journalists,  to  put 
the  people  upon  their  guard.  It  is  well  for  every 
man  to  understand  that  life  here  is  to  be  protected 
at  the  muzzle  of  the  pistol.  The  best  man  in  San 
Francisco  may  be  shot  down  tomorrow  by  some 
ruffian  who  does  not  like  what  he  has  said  or 
done;  yet  the  chances  are  an  hundred  to  one  that 
that  ruffian  will  escape  punishment.  He  may  go 
through  the  farce  of  a  trial,  but  nothing  more. 
Now,  what  is  to  be  the  end  of  this?  Crime  will 
become  so  frequent  that  it  cannot  be  longer  en- 
dured. Then  will  come  lynch  law,  then  men  even 
suspected  of  crime  will  be  hung;  for  people  cannot 
long  live  as  things  are  now  running.  No  man's 
life  is  safe,  in  our  opinion,  for  a  single  moment." 

This  publication,  four  months  preceding  the 
birth  of  the  1856  Vigilance  Committee,  evidences 
clearly  the  trend  of  public  opinion.  It  was  not 
sudden  nor  spasmodic.  It  was  coming,  deadly  and 
terrible,  if  crime  continued.  What  people  thought 
in  the  East  may  be  perused  in  this  excerpt  from  a 
New  York  periodical  of  January,  1856: 

"Assassinations,  murders  and  hangings  consti- 
tute the  leading  materials  of  the  budget  of  news  in 
San  Francisco.  First,  we  are  told  that  General 
W.  H.  Richardson,  United  States  marshal  for  the 
till] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Northern  District  of  California,  was  basely  assassi- 
nated in  the  streets  of  San  Francisco  on  the  even- 
ing of  November  19  by  a  desperado  named  Charles 
Cora.  Then,  that  Hon.  Isaac  B.  Wall,  collector  of 
the  port  of  Monterey,  and  T.  S.  Williamson,  an 
officer  of  the  county  of  Monterey,  were  murdered 
on  the  10th  inst.  Then  we  have  duels  and  robbery 
cases  innumerable.  The  papers  devote  large  space 
to  the  particulars  of  these  horrors,  showing  a  state 
of  things,  especially  in  San  Francisco,  which  carries 
one  back  to  the  days  of  vigilance.  The  provo- 
cation to  hang  the  murderer  of  General  Richard- 
son was  very  strong,  but  the  good  sense  of  the 
better  portion  of  the  people  overcame  the  passion 
of  the  moment  and  induced  them  to  await  the 
proper  judicial  tribunal.  It  is  surprising  to  see 
in  what  a  matter-of-fact,  business-like  way  the 
California  editors  post  the  books  of  their  criminal 
calendar.  Here,  for  instance,  is  a  recapitulation 
of  the  statistics  of  killings  and  hangings  from  the 
first  of  January  last  to  date : 

1st  2nd  3rd 

Quar.  Quar.  Quar.  Oct.  Total 

Total  killed 120  99  208  62  489 

Hung  by  sheriff 2  2  2  6 

Hung  by  mob 8  14  18  6  46 

' '  Horrible !    Horrible !    Total  killed  in  only  ten 
months,  489;  hung,  52.     Kentucky  must  give  up 
the  name  of  the  '  dark  and  bloody  ground '  — 
[112] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

which  is  simply  a  traditional  Indian  nomenclature 
—  while  here  is  ghastly  reality  in  California." 

The  New  York  scribe  might  have  added  that  for 
the  489  murdered  men  the  sacred  law  had  only 
punished  six  of  the  489  assassins!  It  is  true  the 
miners  were  industrious.  They  did  fairly  well, 
hanging  forty-six  wretches;  but  they  could  not  do 
everything. 

And  so  the  scroll  remained.  After  the  mis- 
trial of  Cora  he  was  committed  to  prison.  It  was 
thought  best  by  those  who  aided  him  to  let  several 
months  expire  before  agitating  for  a  second  trial. 
They  counted  on  the  proverbial  forgetfulness  by 
the  many  of  that  which  concerns  the  many.  Ob- 
livion companions  time.  Nevertheless,  the  f ashion- 
ableness  of  crime  had  somewhat  abated.  The 
slaughter  of  Richardson  had  evoked  such  openly 
expressed  exclamations  of  fierce  resentment  that 
scoundrels  were  cowed.  But  this  resentment  was 
restrained  by  the  deep  feeling  of  regard  and  respect 
for  the  laws  and  welfare  of  the  city  by  men  who 
hesitated  to  usurp  the  functions  of  justice  and 
who  quietly  waited. 

James  King  of  William,  a  Virginian,  was  one 
of  the  early  pioneers,  and  joined  the  Vigilantes  of 
1851,  already  portrayed.  Like  others  who  came 
to  seek  fortune,  he  had  engaged  in  different  occu- 
pations, including  banking.  The  bank  of  which 
he  was  manager  failed  and  he  was  directly  cen- 
[113] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

sured.  But  that  was  a  misfortune  and  not  a 
crime.  Possessed  of  some  literary  acumen  and  a 
disdain  and  contempt  for  those  who  disturbed  the 
city's  reputation  and  tranquillity,  he  thought  that 
an  honest  newspaper  might  exist. 

With  slender  resources,  obtained  from  friends, 
he  established  the  Evening  Bulletin,  which  still 
flourishes,  without  change  of  appellation.  His 
sharp,  sarcastic  paragraphs,  clarity  of  statement 
and  the  vigor  and  vehemence  with  which  he  daily 
assailed  public  wrongs  and  their  perpetrators  made 
both  editor  and  journal  marked  and  distinct  above 
others.  Included  in  these  others  was  a  weekly 
paper  owned  and  published  by  James  P.  Casey. 
These  two  men  represented  the  two  moral  and 
political  extremes. 

On  a  Sunday  Casey's  journal  printed  an  article 
from  an  anonymous  contributor.  The  article 
related  that  King's  brother  had  vainly  sought  a 
federal  office,  the  one,  in  fact,  held  by  General 
Richardson  at  his  death,  and  that  he  had  been 
ignominiously  repulsed.  Meanwhile,  King  was 
daily  attacking  the  federal  brigade  and  asserting 
their  active  or  silent  co-operation  with  the  black- 
guards of  the  city. 

King's  brother  went  to  Casey's  office,  denied  the 

statement    and    demanded    the    author's   name. 

Casey  refused,  truculently  adding  that  he  held 

himself  responsible.    A  day  or  two  later  Casey 

[114] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

heard  that  James  King  had  ascertained  some  un- 
pleasant details  of  his  career  and  contemplated 
publishing  them.  He  repaired  to  the  Bulletin 
office  and  remonstrated  with  King,  but  the  latter 
gave  him  slight  recognition.  The  same  evening 
the  Bulletin  contained  a  statement,  from  which 
the  annexed  is  an  extract. 

"The  fact  that  Casey  has  been  an  inmate  of 
Sing  Sing  prison  in  New  York  is  no  offence  against 
the  laws  in  this  state;  nor  is  the  fact  of  his  having 
stuffed  himself  through  the  ballot-box,  as  elected 
to  the  Board  of  Supervisors  from  a  district  where 
it  is  said  he  was  not  even  a  candidate,  any  justifica- 
tion why  Mr.  Bagley  should  shoot  Casey,  however 
richly  the  latter  may  deserve  having  his  neck 
stretched  for  such  fraud  on  the  people."  Strong 
provocation  surely;  but  hardly  a  killing  matter, 
when  it  was  true !  The  evil  that  men  do  lives  with 
them  as  well  as  after  them. 

Casey,  after  reading  the  paper,  lurked  in  the 
vicinity  of  King's  office  until  the  latter  departed 
for  home.  Casey  suddenly  confronted  King  on 
the  street  near  by  and  shot  him.  The  latter  sank 
to  the  ground  mortally  wounded.  Casey  was 
arrested  and  incarcerated.  It  was  five  in  the 
afternoon,  when  the  thoroughfares  were  crowded, 
and  the  appalling  intelligence  was  directly  known, 

The  similarity  both  in  characters  and  circum- 
stances raised  the  cries:  "Another  Cora  and 
[115] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Richardson  affair,"  "More  hung  juries  and  less 
hung  men,"  "He  will  get  clear  if  the  officers 
keep  him." 

With  one  brain  and  action,  as  if  in  telepathic 
concert,  maddened  men  ran  to  the  city  prison; 
but  the  heavy  outside  iron  doors  leading  to  the 
halls  were  closed  and  locked,  and  the  inner  station 
was  guarded  and  barricaded.  King  was  too 
severely  hurt  to  be  transferred  to  his  residence. 
He  was  tenderly  raised,  carefully  placed  on  a  cot, 
hurried  to  the  nearest  office  and  in  thirty  min- 
utes five  of  the  best  physicians  in  town  were  at 
the  bedside,  fighting  death.  Around  the  building 
where  he  rested  thronged  a  sorrowing  multitude 
whose  sympathy  was  soon  changed  to  violent 
frenzy  when  the  medical  men  stated  the  gravity 
of  the  wound,  while  cries  of  "Let  us  organize 
and  hang  him!  hang  all  the  gamblers!"  terrified 
the  air.  Darkness  came,  and  the  authorities,  fear- 
ing a  night  attack  on  the  city  prison,  planned 
to  remove  Casey  to  the  stronger  county  jail  on 
Broadway.  A  carriage  was  ostentatiously  brought 
to  the  main  entrance,  and  while  the  populace 
watched  and  waited,  he  was  quietly  removed  by 
a  side  door,  pushed  into  a  conveyance,  a  pistol 
thrust  into  either  hand  and,  drawn  by  speedy 
and  strong  horses,  dashing  up  the  steep  incline, 
the  prisoner  was  in  his  new  cell  before  the 
manoeuvre  could  be  detected  and  thwarted.  Ten 
[116] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

thousand  desperate  men  surged  and  seethed  all 
night  around  the  solid  prison  walls  like  storm- 
tossed  waves  dashing  on  an  island  lighthouse. 
The  policemen,  aided  by  two  city  troops  hastily 
summoned  from  their  quarters,  mustered  a  force 
of  three  hundred,  who  kept  guard  in  the  jail  and 
patrolled  the  walls.  A  woman  hard  by  was  asked 
to  provide  food  for  them,  but  she  hotly  refused, 
and  not  one  of  the  neighboring  residents  would 
furnish  shelter  or  coffee  to  the  defenders  of  "law 
and  order." 

It  was  a  dangerous  night  and  there  might  have 
been  a  massacre  had  the  fates  so  willed.  Every 
building  in  the  vicinity  was  alive  with  humanity, 
and  the  thrilling  and  exciting  scenes  exceeded  any 
occurrence  during  the  old  Vigilance  Committee 
era.  The  mayor  endeavored  to  address  the  people 
from  the  jail  steps,  saying:  "Let  the  law  have 
its  course  and  justice  will  be  done."  But  they 
replied:  "Look  at  the  case  of  poor  Richardson. 
How  is  it  in  his  case?  Where  is  Cora  now? 
Down  on  such  justice.  Let  us  hang  him!" 
Unable  to  secure  a  hearing,  he  retired.  Cora  must 
have  heard  these  fearful  demands  from  his  cell 
near  by,  which  he  had  restlessly  trodden  for  six 
months.  The  rumor  that  King's  condition  was 
somewhat  alleviated,  and  that  the  doctors  were 
more  hopeful,  tranquillized  the  impatient  mass  and 
the  darkness  closed  in  quiet,  waiting  for  the  day. 
[117] 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE    COMMITTEE    OF    VIGILANCE  —  CONTINUED 

THE  next  morning  a  call  appeared  in  the  press 
for  a  meeting  of  citizens  at  105|  Sacramento 
Street,  in  the  quarters  lately  occupied  by  the 
Native  American  party.  During  the  day  a  thou- 
sand men  signed  the  roster  of  the  committee  and 
sanctioned  the  adoption  of  a  constitution.  This 
document  was  a  repetition  of  the  one  under  which 
the  Vigilantes  of  five  years  earlier  acted. 

It  embraced  several  additional  provisions  to 
provide  for  the  present  emergencies.  For  example : 
"that  the  action  of  this  body  shall  be  entirely  and 
vigorously  free  from  all  consideration  of  or  parti- 
cipation hi  the  merits  or  demerits,  or  opinions  or 
acts  of  any  and  all  sects,  political  parties  or  sec- 
tional divisions  in  this  community;  and  every  class 
of  orderly  citizens,  of  whatever  sect,  party  or 
nativity,  may  become  members  of  this  body. 
No  discussion  of  political,  sectional  or  sectarian 
subjects  shall  be  allowed  in  the  rooms  of  the 
association.  That  no  person  accused  before  this 
body  shall  be  punished  until  after  fair  and  impartial 
trial  and  conviction.  No  vote  inflicting  the  death 
penalty  shall  be  binding  unless  passed  by  two- 
thirds  of  those  present  and  entitled  to  vote." 
[118] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

This  thousand  embraced  the  principal  merchants 
and  professional  men,  those  best  known  for  charac- 
ter, influence  and  standing. 

The  two  city  troops  that  had  protected  the  jail 
the  night  previous  promptly  sent  their  resigna- 
tions to  the  governor,  stacked  their  arms  in  the 
armory,  disbanded  and  then  the  major  portion 
proceeded  to  the  Vigilante  headquarters  and 
appended  their  signatures  to  the  membership  list. 
Mass  meetings  assembled  at  Sacramento,  Nevada, 
Placerville,  Folsom  and  Marysville,  denouncing 
the  shooting  of  King,  approving  the  organization 
and  purposes  of  the  committee  and  offering  armed 
assistance  if  requested.  The  following  from  the 
Marysville  meeting  indicates  the  universal  ex- 
pression : 

"That  we  recognize  in  James  King,  editor  of 
the  Bulletin,  the  sincere  and  earnest  friend  of  the 
poor;  the  bold  and  fearless  exposer  of  vice,  crime 
and  corruption;  the  independent  and  uncompro- 
mising opponent  of  official  villains  and  swindlers, 
and  the  best  and  most  faithful  exponent  our  state 
has  afforded  of  that  sentiment  which  prevails 
everywhere  among  the  masses  of  the  people." 

Thousands  of  miners  ceased  their  labors,  belted 
their  revolvers,  shouldered  their  rifles  and  hastened 
to  San  Francisco.  There  was  an  immediate  ces- 
sation of  business  and  traffic,  the  dense  masses 
in  the  streets  awaiting  with  intense  interest  the 
[119] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

bulletins  of  the  doctors.  Mr.  King  lingered  sev- 
eral days,  and  meanwhile  the  swelling  numbers 
of  the  committee;  the  purchase  by  their  repre- 
sentatives of  every  weapon  in  the  gun  shops;  the 
seizure  of  those  in  the  armories,  including  two 
pieces  of  ordnance  with  abundant  ammunition, 
and  the  constant  drilling  in  companies  of  a  hun- 
dred men  each  day  and  night,  evidenced  the 
resolute  firmness,  admirable  planning  and  cool 
foresight  of  the  leaders.  Governor  Johnson  came 
down  from  Sacramento  and  held  a  conference  with 
the  executive  committee.  By  his  instructions 
the  sheriff  who  kept  the  prison  allowed  a  small 
body  of  Vigilantes  to  camp  within  the  walls. 
The  committee  was  resolved  that  Casey  should 
not  be  spirited  away.  The  sheriff,  through  his 
deputies,  served  a  document  on  citizens  he  en- 
countered in  the  streets  commanding  them  to 
appear  at  the  jail,  prepared  to  serve  under  his 
authority. 

One  hundred  were  summoned;  but  fifty  re- 
sponded, of  whom  the  moiety  were  legal  advocates. 
King  was  of  strong  and  buoyant  physique,  he 
fought  hard.  On  Saturday  night  his  condition 
was  worse.  The  Vigilantes  had  been  directed  to 
assemble  on  the  ringing  of  the  Monumental  Fire 
Engine  Company's  bell.  The  fateful  bell  rang 
out  slowly  and  distinctly  at  nine  o'clock  on  Sun- 
day morning.  It  seemed  not  unexpected.  People 
[120] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

were  waiting,  ready  and  strained  to  the  work. 
Moving  throngs  hurried  to  the  Sacramento  Street 
quarters,  where  they  were  assigned  arms.  Already 
they  knew  the  military  duties.  At  midday  an 
army  of  twenty-six  hundred  men,  cavalry,  infantry 
and  artillery,  armed  and  equipped  in  strict  martial 
array,  proceeded  in  regular  marching  order  to  the 
prison,  which  they  completely  surrounded. 

Placing  two  cannon  in  front  of  the  gates,  these 
were  deliberately  loaded  with  balls  and  powder  in 
full  view  of  the  inmates.  Then  Mr.  W.  T.  Cole- 
man,  the  president  of  the  organization,  with  three 
other  members,  advanced  to  the  doors,  requested 
audience  of  the  sheriff  and  demanded  of  him  the 
custody  of  Cora  and  Casey.  As  the  imposing 
force  wound  up  the  hill  to  the  prison  portals  the 
sheriff  went  to  the  cell  of  Casey  and  said:  " There 
are  two  thousand  armed  men  coming  for  you  and 
I  have  not  thirty  men  about  the  jail."  Casey 
replied:  "Then  do  not  peril  your  life  and  that  of 
the  officers  in  defending  me;  I  will  go  with  them." 

When  Coleman  and  his  associates  came  to  his 
cell,  Casey  asked  for  a  fair  trial  and  protection  in 
leaving.  He  was  apprehensive  of  being  hanged 
forthwith.  Both  were  assured  and  Casey  came 
out,  was  placed  in  a  carriage  and  taken  to  rooms 
prepared  for  him  at  headquarters.  Cora  was 
placed  in  a  second  carriage  and  joined  him  an  hour 
later.  They  were  guarded  and  escorted  by  the 
[1211 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

whole  force  with  all  San  Francisco  as  silent  specta- 
tors; for  it  is  said  there  was  no  disturbance  of  any 
kind. 

The  entire  proceedings  were  conducted  with  the 
dignity  and  decorum  of  a  funeral.  When  men 
contemplate  death,  levity  disappears.  Three  hun- 
dred Vigilantes  remained  on  guard  day  and  night. 
The  rest  of  the  army  marched  quietly  down  to  the 
bay  and  discharged  their  weapons,  hi  order  to 
prevent  accidents  and  be  again  prepared  for  the 
ringing  of  the  bell. 

King  died  on  Tuesday,  six  days  after  he  was 
shot.  An  inquest  and  trial  were  had  and  the 
verdict  rendered  read:  "That  the  deceased  came 
to  his  death  by  a  pistol  ball  fired  by  James  S. 
Casey  and  that  the  act  was  premeditated  and 
unjustifiable."  Two  days  later,  the  22nd  of  May, 
1856,  King  was  interred. 

As  the  funeral  cortege  of  ten  thousand  silent 
mourners  pressed  down  Montgomery  Street  they 
were  startled  on  gazing  to  the  left  to  see,  a  hundred 
yards  distant,  the  suspended,  swaying  bodies  of 
Cora  and  Casey.  The  vast  multitude  of  soldiers, 
spectators  and  mourners,  encompassing  the  sable 
catafalque,  and  the  lithe  figures  overhead,  quiver- 
ing in  the  mellow  spring  sunshine,  constituted 
such  a  sombre  spectacle  as  has  been  rarely  wit- 
nessed. Before  being  hanged,  Casey  addressed  a 
few  sentences  to  the  listeners;  Cora  said  nothing. 
[122] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

They  both  died  like  men,  bravely.  The  two 
thousand  armed  Vigilantes  who  had  witnessed  the 
execution  in  stoical  silence  were  then  drawn  up 
in  line,  double  file,  and  reviewed  by  the  superior 
officers.  Thereafter  they  countermarched  to  head- 
quarters and,  entering  through  one  door,  stacked 
arms  and  filed  out  through  the  opposite  exit  to 
mingle  again  with  their  fellow  citizens. 

The  power  they  had  assumed  for  a  definite  pur- 
pose was  finished,  and  they  resumed  their  various 
vocations  after  its  accomplishment.  They  be- 
lieved what  was  done  was  best  done,  for  the  will 
of  the  good  people  should  be  the  law  of  the  land. 
San  Francisco,  that  had  been  aghast  and  stupefied 
since  the  shooting  of  King,  lived  once  more.  In 
its  arteries  flowed  again  the  rich  blood  of  com- 
merce; people  were  aroused  from  their  lethargy, 
and  life's  game  continued,  as  when  sand  is  thrown 
over  the  red  stains,  the  dead  gladiator  dragged 
from  the  Roman  arena  and  the  combat  renewed. 

But  the  committee  retained  its  existence,  ac- 
tivity and  organization  —  inexorable,  indefatiga- 
ble, implacable.  It  declared  itself  "a  regulating 
court,  determined  to  enforce  measures  to  prevent 
the  further  perpetration  of  crime  and  corruption 
in  the  community.  We  allow  persons  of  all 
nations  and  tongues  of  good  moral  character  to 
become  members.  These  are  fundamental  princi- 
ples of  the  body  and  will  be  rigidly  adhered  to. 
[123] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

All  creeds,  religious  and  political  opinions  must 
be  thrown  aside.  We  enter  the  great  battle  of 
virtue  against  vice,  of  right  against  wrong,  of 
liberty  against  oppression,  and  we  are  determined 
at  all  hazards  to  crush  out  the  monster  vice  of 
election  frauds  as  one  of  the  greatest  causes  of  our 
troubles." 

I  quote  thus  copiously  from  their  proceedings 
and  proclamations,  for  it  is  my  opinion  that  men 
who  combined  for  such  grave  purpose  and  did 
such  grave  deeds  without  legal  warranty  can  give 
better  reasons  for  their  actions  than  others. 

The  committee  arrested  and  imprisoned  many 
persons  suspected  or  known  to  be  guilty  of  crimes. 
One  of  these,  overcome  by  terror,  committed 
suicide.  They  were  all  tried  and,  if  found  guilty, 
various  penalties  were  imposed,  the  most  serious 
being  banishment  from  California.  In  such  cases 
the  culprits  were  placed  on  sea-going  vessels  for 
Australia,  Europe  or  the  Orient  and  warned  not 
to  return  under  penalty  of  death. 

The  mayor  and  officials  of  the  city  made  no 
effort  to  thwart  the  energetic  actions  of  the  Vigi- 
lantes. The  governor,  at  the  committee's  initiative, 
did  not  oppose  them.  On  the  contrary,  after  con- 
ferring with  the  leaders  he  instructed  the  sheriff 
to  receive  a  number  of  Vigilantes  in  the  prison, 
for  the  purpose  of  overseeing  Casey  and  Cora  and 
preventing  attempts  at  escape.  After  their  execu- 
[1241 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

tion  he  became  more  hostile  to  the  committee 
and  issued  orders  to  W.  T.  Sherman  authorizing 
him  to  raise  troops,  incorporate  with  them  the 
enrolled  militia  and  stand  ready  for  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  law. 

The  governor's  proceedings  were  exactly  parallel 
with  those  of  his  predecessor  five  years  previous, 
and  one  might  presume  that  he  was  simply  fol- 
lowing an  established  precedent.  W.  T.  Sherman 
had  been  a  West  Point  graduate,  but  at  this  period 
was  a  member  of  a  San  Francisco  banking  house. 
Because  of  his  military  education  the  governor 
very  properly  proclaimed  Sherman  major-general 
of  the  California  National  Guard.  Sherman 
issued  orders  directing  volunteer  captains  to  fill 
their  companies  to  the  highest  standard,  and  for 
all  other  citizens  not  legally  exempt  to  enroll,  form 
companies  of  fifty,  elect  a  captain  and  report 
to  him  for  duty.  The  number  of  those,  including 
new  recruits,  who  reported  at  his  quarters  was 
seventy-five,  to  oppose  whom  the  Vigilantes  had 
five  thousand  men,  with  a  regular  battery  of  field 
pieces.  Two  days  after  the  governor's  proclama- 
tion was  issued  the  committee  tried,  found  guilty 
and  deported  on  an  outgoing  vessel  a  half  dozen 
vicious  and  desperate  characters. 

There  were  some  good  men  in  the  city  who  had 
not  as  yet  affiliated  with  the  committee.  Several 
of  these  gentlemen  repaired  to  Benicia  and  inter- 
[125] 


The  Life  of  David  C  Brodcrick 

Teny, 


fee  society  by  lone  it  vunid 


:-..—   •-,--.    •-: 
wife  stole 


to 

::.'-.   :.:-^:   '.: 


hflHM 


Of  tihaetke 


Me  1««9,  it  bad  approred 
the  Vigilantes  of  1S5L    On  tins  oeeaaoo  it  at 


[126] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

geance  of  the  Vigilantes  was  prompt  and  incisive. 
An  immense  number  of  copies  were  heaped  to- 
gether on  Front  Street  and  burned  by  merchants 
and  employees.  The  tradespeople  then  simply 
withdrew  their  subscriptions  and  advertisements. 
The  next  issue  of  the  Herald  following  the  denun- 
ciation shrunk  from  forty  to  twenty-four  columns, 
in  a  week  to  sixteen,  and  then  it  became  moribund. 
Encouraged  by  these  marks  of  public  support, 
the  committee  issued  the  following  clear  and  vigor- 
ous statement  to  the  people  of  California,  explain- 
ing and  justifying  their  actions: 

"  Embodied  in  the  principles  01  republican  gov- 
ernment are  the  truths  that  the  majority  shall 
rule,  and  when  corrupt  officials  who  have  fraud- 
ulently seized  the  reins  of  authority  designedly 
thwart  the  execution  of  the  laws  of  punishment 
upon  the  notoriously  guilty,  then  the  power  they 
usurped  reverts  back  to  the  people  from  whom 
it  was  wrested.  Realizing  these  truths,  and  con- 
fident that  they  were  carrying  out  the  will  of  the 
vast  majority  of  the  citizens  of  this  country,  the 
Committee  of  Vigilance,  under  a  solemn  sense  of 
responsibility  that  rested  upon  them,  have  calmly 
and  dispassionately  weighed  the  evidence  before 
them  and  decreed  the  death  of  some  who,  by  their 
crimes  and  villainies,  had  stained  our  fair  land. 

"Our  single,  heartfelt  aim  is  the  public  good; 
the  purging  from  our  community  of  those  aban- 
[127] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

doned  characters  whose  actions  have  been  evil 
continually  and  have  finally  forced  upon  us  the 
efforts  we  are  now  making.  Beyond  the  duties 
incident  to  this  we  do  not  desire  to  interfere  with 
the  details  of  government.  Our  labors  have  been 
arduous,  our  deliberations  have  been  cautious, 
our  determination  firm,  our  counsels  prudent, 
our  motives  pure,  and  when  the  community  shall 
be  freed  from  the  evils  it  has  so  long  endured, 
when  we  have  insured  to  our  citizens  an  honest 
and  vigorous  protection  of  their  rights,  then  this 
Committee  of  Vigilance  will  find  great  pleasure  in 
resigning  their  power  into  the  hands  of  the  people 
from  whom  it  was  received. " 

But  while  thus  explaining  their  motives  the 
committee  did  not  neglect  other  and  different  pre- 
cautions. It  selected  a  square  by  the  water  front, 
bounded  by  four  streets.  A  few  small  buildings 
occupied  part  of  this  square  and  within  were  con- 
structed cells,  guard-houses  and  trial  courts. 

The  principal  front  was  protected  by  a  sand- 
bag breastwork,  ten  feet  high  and  six  feet  wide, 
constructed  twenty  feet  from  a  wall,  fronting  the 
square.  A  narrow  passage  through  this  fortifica- 
tion admitted  members  to  the  interior,  which  was 
diligently  and  discreetly  guarded  night  and  day. 
Upon  the  strengthened  roof  were  located  a  large 
alarm  bell  and  several  field  pieces.  The  executive 
chamber  was  a  spacious  room  decorated  with 
[1281 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

American  flags.  It  was  denominated  Fort  Vigi- 
lance. Every  Vigilante  knew  his  number  and 
company  and  was  obligated  whenever  the  dread 
bell  should  ring  out  the  alarum,  at  whatever  hour 
it  might  be,  to  go  at  once  to  the  fort,  shoulder  his 
rifle,  join  his  company  and  stand  for  orders. 

For  over  two  months  following  the  execution  of 
Cora  and  Casey  not  a  single  man  was  murdered 
in  the  streets  or  houses  of  San  Francisco.  Not  a 
single  one!  A  record  hitherto  unknown  in  the 
annals  of  the  town.  The  fear  of  Vigilante  ven- 
geance was  effective  protection.  The  cry  of  a 
"man  for  breakfast"  was  forgotten  and  people 
breathed. 

Then  came  the  reopening  —  a  quarrel,  verbal 
altercation  and  ruthless  shooting  on  the  street  in 
open  day.  The  assassin  had  shot  a  man  on  the 
street  in  a  similar  manner  three  years  before  and 
the  complacent  jury  acquitted  him.  But  things 
were  different  now.  He  was  promptly  seized, 
jailed  and  tried  in  the  executive  chamber.  He  was 
permitted  attorneys,  witnesses  and  every  legiti- 
mate method  of  disproving  the  grave  crime. 
After  three  days'  patient  hearing  the  committee 
of  four  hundred  sworn  and  attentive  members 
adjudged  him  guilty  and  pronounced  the  penalty 
—  death. 

Another  prisoner  within  the  fortress  walls  had 
killed  two  men  a  year  or  two  previous  and  com- 
[129] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

mitted  other  felonies  which  he  had  boastingly  and 
insolently  avowed.  Divided  and  bought  juries 
had  hitherto  saved  him,  but  it  was  different  now. 
He  also  was  tried,  convicted,  condemned  and,  on 
the  29th  of  July,  the  two  were  hanged  together 
like  Cora  and  Casey  hi  the  presence  of  a  Vigilance 
military  force  augmented  to  five  thousand  men. 
A  looker-on  said  that  "a  more  impressive,  dra- 
matic or  tragic  scene  was  seldom  seen."  By  now 
the  Vigilantes  had  procured  bayonets,  which  were 
attached  to  their  muskets,  and  constant  drilling 
gave  them  a  martial  and  resolute  array.  The 
gray-haired  and  the  black-haired  stood  together, 
arresting  the  laws,  hanging  men  without  cowl, 
candle  or  judge,  yet  no  execution  was  ever  more 
grave  or  solemn.  The  silence  of  the  tomb  per- 
vaded the  brilliant  July  day,  and  fifty  thousand 
spectators  assisted  at  the  event.  If  death  is  to 
be  the  penalty  for  death,  it  would  seem  that  the 
more  public  the  punishment  the  more  deterrent 
the  effect.  What  we  do  not  see  we  may  not  fear. 
To  view  a  hanging  would  deter  the  average  spec- 
tator, I  should  think,  from  participation  in  capital 
crime  as  a  principal. 

Judge  Edward  McGowan  was  an  intimate  asso- 
ciate of  Casey.  It  was  surmised  that  he  was  cog- 
nizant and  encouraged  Casey  in  his  crime,  as  he 
was  seen  in  the  latter 's  company  on  the  street  a 
few  minutes  before  King  was  shot.  It  was  even 
[130] 


DAVID     S.     TERRY 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

asserted  that  the  weapon  used  by  Casey  belonged 
to  McGowan,  and  he  was  at  once  indicted  by  the 
grand  jury  as  an  accessory. 

Therefore  the  Vigilantes  sought  him  after  the 
assassination,  when  these  events  were  known,  with 
an  ardor  that  was  compelling.  McGowan  was 
secreted  by  friends  in  the  town  and  a  few  weeks 
later  made  a  thrilling  escape  from  the  guarded 
city.  He  rode  swiftly  five  hundred  miles  to  Santa 
Barbara,  a  most  romantic  journey,  replete  with 
interesting  adventures.  While  at  Santa  Barbara 
his  identity  was  discovered,  and  the  committee 
sent  several  Vigilantes  to  arrest  and  bring  him 
back,  in  which  they  were  cordially  assisted  by  the 
Santa  Barbara  authorities.  All  over  the  interior 
sympathy  and  support  were  devoted  to  the  Com- 
mittee of  Safety.  Armed  military  organizations 
in  Sacramento,  Marysville  and  Placer  offered  to 
march  to  San  Francisco  and  to  unite  with  the 
Vigilantes  if  demanded.  McGowan  fled  the  beau- 
tiful hamlet  by  the  sea,  whence  he  escaped  by  a 
desperate  chance,  and  remained  ensconced  alone, 
hidden  in  the  mountains,  coming  down  by  night 
and  digging  potatoes  in  the  fields,  which  he  de- 
voured raw. 

For  weeks  he  thus  existed  and,  finally,  months 

later,  when  the  fires  had  died  out,  the  committee 

disbanded  and  men  were  trying  to  forget,  if  not 

forgive,  he  returned  again  on  horseback,  resting 

[1311 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

at  several  of  the  mouldering  old  missions  en  route. 
He  describes  his  experiences  in  a  fascinating  vol- 
ume, the  glamour  of  which  is  scarce  exceeded  by 
the  most  brilliant  romances  of  Dumas  or  Scott. 
He  was  subsequently  tried  and  acquitted  on  the 
indictment  and  lived  to  a  ripe  age,  leaving  descend- 
ants who  are  of  the  most  valued  and  respected 
in  the  land. 

The  office-holders  representing  "Law  and 
Order"  were  naturally  violently  opposed  to  the 
committee,  inasmuch  as  it  had  divested  them  of 
any  real  authority  in  both  city  and  state.  They 
met  frequently  in  conference,  but  were  unable 
to  formulate  any  successful  plan  of  antagonism. 
Power,  influence,  sympathy,  righteousness  and 
numbers  joined  with  the  committee.  As  an  in- 
stance, several  cases  of  rifles  had  been  secretly 
shipped  on  a  vessel  sailing  from  Benicia.  These 
weapons  were  consigned  to  one  of  the  few  city 
military  companies  newly  recruited  for  "Law  and 
Order."  Before  touching  its  destination  the  bark 
and  contents  were  captured  on  the  bay  by  the 
efficient  agents  of  the  committee.  Two  men  of 
the  crew  escaped  to  San  Francisco  and  took  refuge 
in  the  office  of  the  captain  of  the  company  for 
whose  use  the  weapons  were  intended.  Hopkins, 
one  of  the  Vigilante  police,  was  sent  to  arrest 
these  men,  but  he  found  in  the  apartment  a  num- 
ber of  people,  including  David  S.  Terry,  Justice 
[132] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  state.  Hopkins, 
encountering  resistance,  rushed  out  and,  mounting 
a  horse,  dashed  to  the  headquarters,  summoned 
assistance  and  dashed  back.  Meanwhile,  the 
party  of  half  a  dozen,  including  Terry,  all  well 
armed  with  shotguns  and  pistols,  left  the  rooms 
and  hurried  along  the  streets  towards  the  armory 
of  the  company. 

But  Hopkins  overtook  them,  sprung  from  his 
horse  and  undertook  to  pass  Terry  and  another 
man,  who  formed  the  rear  guard,  the  two  men 
Hopkins  sought  being  in  front.  Terry  raised  his 
shotgun,  Hopkins  seized  it  and  pushed  it  down. 
Then  a  scuffle  ensued  and  Terry,  drawing  a  bowie 
knife,  stabbed  Hopkins  deeply  in  the  left  side  of 
the  neck.  A  melee  followed  between  the  rest  of 
Terry's  companions  and  a  number  of  citizens  who 
came  to  Hopkins'  rescue,  but  although  a  shot  was 
fired,  no  one  was  killed  or  injured,  and  the  assailed 
party  finally  reached  the  armory,  which  they 
quickly  barricaded.  The  ominous  song  of  the 
heavy  bell  crowning  the  summit  of  the  Vigilantes' 
headquarters  rang  over  the  startled  and  attentive 
metropolis.  Merchants  and  clerks  closed  their 
shops,  draymen  unharnessed  their  horses  in  the 
streets,  laborers  and  artisans  hurried  from  their 
toil,  the  hotels  and  manufactories  were  emptied; 
members  of  the  committee,  hastening  to  head- 
quarters, gave  the  password,  were  admitted, 
[1331 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

seized  rifles  and  formed  companies  outside  —  all 
in  good  time,  with  decorum  and  gravity.  In  an 
hour  the  armory  was  surrounded  by  thousands  of 
armed  and  disciplined  Americans  and  a  peremp- 
tory demand  made  for  the  surrender  of  the 
inmates. 

Resistance  was  hopeless  and  invited  instant 
death.  The  armory  opened  its  gates,  those  within, 
some  sixty-eight,  surrendered  their  arms  and  were 
all  marshalled  down  between  ranks  to  headquar- 
ters, where  every  one  was  released  except  Terry, 
who  was  confined  and  strictly  guarded  in  one  of 
the  cells,  awaiting  the  outcome  of  the  wound 
he  inflicted  upon  Hopkins.  This  was  the  21st  of 
June,  1856.  He  was  brought  before  the  executive 
committee  and  the  trial  in  its  majesty  and  exem- 
plary conduct  is  a  marvel  and  example. 

Terry  was  accused  of  the  stabbing  of  Hopkins 
and  resisting  officers  of  the  committee  while  in  the 
discharge  of  duty;  of  an  attack  hi  1853  on  Mr. 
Roadhouse,  a  citizen  of  Stockton,  in  the  court- 
house of  Stockton;  of  an  attack  on  Mr.  King,  a 
citizen  of  Stockton,  at  the  charter  election  of 
Stockton;  of  resistance  in  1853  of  a  writ  of  habeas 
corpus  by  which  William  Roach  escaped  from  the 
custody  of  the  law  and  the  infant  heirs  of  the 
Sanchez  family  were  deprived  of  then-  rights,  and 
of  an  attack  in  1853  on  J.  H.  Purdy,  in  the  city  of 
San  Francisco.  To  all  of  these  several  charges 
[134] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

he  replied  in  person  and  by  evidence.  His  first 
statement  began  thus: 

"It  has  been  suggested  that  I  should  make  some 
written  statement  in  reply  to  the  charges  made 
against  me  by  your  body. 

"You  doubtless  feel  that  you  are  engaged  in  a 
praiseworthy  undertaking.  This  question  I  will 
not  attempt  to  discuss;  for  whilst  I  cannot  recon- 
cile your  acts  with  my  ideas  of  right  and  justice, 
candor  forces  me  to  confess  that  the  evils  you  arose 
to  repress  were  glaring  and  palpable,  and  the  end 
you  seek  to  attain  is  a  noble  one.  The  question 
on  which  we  differ  is,  as  to  whether  the  end  justifies 
the  means  by  which  you  have  sought  its  accom- 
plishment; and  as  this  is  a  question  on  which  men 
equally  pure,  upright  and  honest  might  differ,  a 
discussion  would  result  in  nothing  profitable. 

"I  am  aware  that  at  times  I  have  acted  hastily. 
I  am  naturally  of  a  very  excitable  habit,  but  it 
cannot  be  said  by  any  one  that  I  ever  sought 
difficulties.  The  specifications  speak  of  my  vio- 
lent and  turbulent  habits;  and  what  do  they  prove? 
That  I  will  promptly  resent  a  personal  affront. 
One  of  the  first  lessons  I  learned  was  to  avoid 
giving  insults  and  to  allow  none  to  be  given  to  me. 
I  have  acted,  and  expect  to  continue  to  act,  on 
this  principle.  I  believe  no  man  has  a  right  to 
outrage  the  feelings  of  another  or  attempt  to  blast 
his  good  name,  without  being  responsible  for  his 
[135] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

actions.  I  believe  if  a  gentleman  should  wound 
the  feelings  of  any  one  he  should  at  once  make  a 
suitable  reparation,  either  by  an  ample  apology 
or,  if  he  feels  that  circumstances  prevent  this 
-  that  is,  if  he  made  charges  that  he  still 
thinks  true  —  should  afford  him  the  satisfaction 
he  desires. 

"I  know  that  a  great  many  men  differ  with 
me  and  look  with  a  degree  of  horror  on  any  one 
entertaining  such  sentiments.  My  own  experience 
has  taught  me  that  when  the  doctrine  of  personal 
responsibility  obtains  men  are  seldom  insulted 
without  good  cause  and  private  character  is  safer 
from  attack;  that  much  quarrelling  and  bad  blood 
and  revengeful  feeling  is  avoided." 

Amid  the  numerous  witnesses  who  testified  in 
Terry's  behalf  were  Perley  and  Brooks,  the  former 
having  been  his  legal  associate  in  Stockton.  Both 
these  gentlemen  appear  later  in  his  difficulty  with 
Broderick.  Also  came  judges  and  sheriffs  from 
Stockton,  and  people  from  all  over  the  state. 
Terry  conducted  his  own  defence,  and  the  pro- 
ceeding lasted  several  weeks.  It  must  be  under- 
stood that  only  the  executive  committee,  counsel 
of  the  defence  and  prosecution,  and  single  wit- 
nesses were  present,  and  that  the  hearings  were 
in  the  executive  hall  and  entirely  secret. 

I  extract  this  testimony  from  the  evidence  of 
R.  P.  Ashe,  from  whose  apartment  Hopkins  was 
[136] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

first  ejected.  "  A  man  called  Terrence  Kelly  came 
to  see  us.  Terry  was  lying  on  the  sofa.  He  said 
he  had  received  notice  to  leave  from  the  Vigilance 
Committee  and  acknowledged  that  he  had  been 
instrumental  in  giving  in  false  election  returns. 
He  evidently  came  for  protection.  Judge  Terry 
said  to  him  that  it  was  such  damned  rascals  as  he 
was  that  people  had  a  right  to  complain  of  who  had 
produced  all  this  trouble  and  that  he  ought  to  be 
hung.  Kelly  left  and  never  returned." 

The  trial,  which  embraces  seventy-five  closely 
printed  pages  embodying  the  oral  testimony  and 
written  depositions  of  numerous  witnesses,  lasted 
six  weeks  with  this 

VERDICT 

First  charge  —  Guilty. 

Second  charge  —  Guilty. 

Third  charge  —  Guilty. 

Fourth,  fifth  and  sixth  charges  —  Dismissed. 

JUDGMENT 

"That  David  S.  Terry,  having  been  convicted, 
after  a  full,  fair  and  impartial  trial  of  certain 
charges  before  the  Committee  of  Vigilance  and  the 
usual  punishments  in  their  power  to  inflict  not 
being  applicable  in  the  present  instance,  therefore, 
be  it  declared  the  decision  of  the  Committee  of 
Vigilance,  that  said  David  S.  Terry  be  discharged 
from  their  custody;  and  also 
[1371 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

"Resolved,  that  in  the  opinion  of  the  committee 
the  interests  of  the  state  imperatively  demand  that 
the  said  David  S.  Terry  should  resign  his  position 
as  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court. 

"  Resolved,  that  this  resolution  be  read  to  David 
S.  Terry,  and  he  be  forthwith  discharged  from  the 
custody  of  the  Committee  of  Vigilance  on  this 
being  ratified  by  the  Board  of  Delegates." 

He  did  resign  his  position  as  Judge  of  the 
Supreme  Court  three  years  later  under  other  but 
equally  untoward  conditions.  Hopkins  lived,  and 
was  convalescent  when  Terry  was  discharged. 
It  is  very  probable  that  if  Hopkins  had  died 
Terry  would  have  hanged.  The  committee  were 
implacable. 

Those  opposed  to  the  Vigilantes  were  styled 
"Law  and  Order"  associates.  They  by  no  means 
desisted  in  their  efforts,  despite  the  overpowering 
moral  and  military  ascendancy  of  the  committee. 

Turning  from  the  governor  as  impracticable, 
they  appealed  to  the  United  States  naval  and 
military  authorities  at  San  Francisco.  General 
Wool  declared  he  should  intervene  only  upon 
instructions  from  Washington.  A  committee  left 
directly  and,  proceeding  via  Panama,  interviewed 
the  President  at  the  White  House.  The  President 
told  them  that  until  called  upon  officially  by  the 
state  authorities  the  federal  government  could  do 
nothing.  He  added  that  the  proper  method  of 
[138] 


The  Committee  of  Vigilance 

procedure  would  be  for  the  governor  to  summon 
the  legislature  in  extra  session,  the  legislature 
should  declare  the  state  in  insurrection  and  author- 
ize the  governor  to  levy  troops  and  forcibly  sup- 
press all  insubordination.  Then,  if  unsuccessful, 
the  governor  and  legislature  could  call  upon  the 
President  for  relief,  and  it  would  be  granted. 

The  deputation  returned  to  California  with  this 
bootless  message.  For  the  members  of  the  legisla- 
ture, springing  from  the  people  and  seeking  re- 
election in  the  fall,  were  only  solicitous  to  make 
their  approval  and  endorsement  of  the  Vigilantes 
decided  and  positive,  and  the  governor  dared  not 
call  them  together,  even  if  he  had  been  so  inclined, 
so  that  project  was  fruitless,  and  the  committee 
remained  resolute  masters.  Still,  affairs  pro- 
gressed as  usual.  Courts  met  and  adjourned, 
petty  criminals  were  arrested,  tried  and  judged. 
Over  the  state  was  the  utmost  quiet.  The  Vigi- 
lantes interfered  with  no  constituted  authority; 
only  as  censors,  like  so  many  Catos,  they  serenely 
contemplated  the  conditions. 

From  the  police  commissioner  they  took  the  bal- 
lot-boxes, still  preserved,  of  the  preceding  elections. 
On  a  careful  examination  it  was  ascertained  that 
the  boxes  had  false  bottoms  and  sides,  skilfully 
contrived.  These  false  compartments  were  stuffed 
with  spurious  ballots  before  polling;  when  the 
balloting  was  ended  the  contents  of  the  box  would 
[1391 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

be  emptied  on  the  table;  the  secret  chambers 
opened,  and  the  fictitious  ballots  fell  in  a  heap 
with  the  genuine  ones  and  were  counted  together. 
It  was  quite  easy  and  simple,  and  its  efficiency  was 
exhibited  in  the  election  of  Casey  and  his  friends. 

The  Vigilantes  exposed  this  fraud  to  the  public, 
and  then  nominated  for  the  ensuing  city  election 
a  ticket  chosen  by  the  committee  and  ratified  by 
the  Vigilantes  in  general,  publishing  the  names 
several  weeks  in  advance  and  substituting  other 
names  when  found  desirable  or  necessary  through 
public  criticism.  In  November  this  ticket  was 
elected  to  a  man,  and  the  same  people  and  influ- 
ences that  inspired  and  controlled  the  action  of 
the  Vigilantes  continued  to  rule  San  Francisco  for 
a  quarter  of  a  century,  during  which  it  was  one  of 
the  best  governed  cities  in  the  world.  Directly 
after  the  election  the  Vigilantes  held  a  grand 
review  and  then  disbanded. 

On  the  roster  were  between  eight  and  nine  thou- 
sand names,  and  nearly  the  entire  host  paraded. 
They  had  existed  six  months  and  the  two  assassina- 
tions in  the  city  during  that  period  could  be  easily 
computed.  During  the  same  half  of  the  previous 
year  the  number  of  men  killed  by  violence  exceeded 
a  hundred!  That  is  what  the  Vigilantes  accom- 
plished. The  reign  of  terror  was  ended  and  Cali- 
fornia was  civilized  by  methods  not  sanctioned  in 
civilization. 

[140] 


CHAPTER  VIII 

SENATOR 

THE  Vigilance  Committee,  like  the  Native 
American  party  of  the  preceding  year,  does 
not  appear  to  have  seriously  affected  Broderick 
or  his  fortunes.  He  remained  constantly  and 
inviolably  a  Democrat,  never  swerving  from  his 
fealty.  The  American  organization  was  evanes- 
cent and  the  Vigilantes  confined  to  the  city,  with 
no  special  bearing  on  the  legislature.  The  proof 
of  this  is  exhibited  when  we  find  that  in  the  Novem- 
ber elections  of  1856,  while  the  Vigilantes  elected 
every  single  one  of  their  nominees  on  the  municipal 
ticket,  all,  or  nearly  all,  of  the  successful  members 
of  the  legislature  from  San  Francisco  were  Bro- 
derick men.  The  Vigilantes,  according  to  their 
written  tenet,  recognized  no  party  or  creed  in 
their  councils;  only  honesty  and  integrity  against 
dishonesty  and  crime. 

It  is  true  that  formerly  Broderick  had  the  city 
government  in  his  grasp  and  possessed  it  for  years. 
It  was  the  real  foundation  of  his  power  and  en- 
abled him  to  live  while  he  was  growing.  But  the 
American  party  victory  of  1855  had  shattered  his 
edifice,  and  the  Vigilantes  of  1856  completely 
demolished  the  structure.  But  by  now  he  was 
[1411 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

regarded  over  the  state  as  a  statesman  whose 
aspirations  for  an  exalted  station  were  known  to 
every  one,  and  by  virtue  of  this  recognition  he  was 
not  called  upon  to  do  "  local  politics,"  which  must 
have  been  to  him  an  immense  relief. 

Nevertheless,  many  of  his  errant  followers  were 
on  the  proscribed  list  of  the  committee  and  many 
more  deserved  to  be.  A  man  who  had  ruled  a  city 
for  years  must  have  been  compelled  to  use  and 
recognize  elements  that  were  sordid  and  vicious; 
elements  that  he  must  have  despised,  yet  admitted 
to  his  acquaintance,  for  one  cannot  control  men 
or  multitudes  with  kid  gloves  and  platitudes. 
Almost  the  only  definite  reference  to  the  com- 
mittee by  Broderick  or  of  Broderick  is  his  own 
statement,  made  three  years  later,  that  "  during 
Terry's  incarceration  by  the  Vigilance  Committee 
I  paid  $200  a  week  to  support  a  newspaper  in 
Terry's  defence."  Like  a  wise  man  he  left  the 
turbulent  geyser  of  the  city  to  the  calming  influence 
of  Time,  that  marvellous  physician,  and  visited 
the  towns,  hamlets,  camps  and  gold  gorges  of  the 
interior.  He  met  and  interviewed  each  and  every 
individual  Democratic  aspirant  for  the  legislature 
from  north  to  south  and  from  east  to  west,  exer- 
cising all  his  grave  and  impressive  personality 
to  gain  their  suffrages.  One  of  these,  Rogers  of 
Tuolumne,  relates  that  Broderick  came  to  see 
him  on  a  rainy  day  and  they  conferred  from  sun- 
[142] 


Senator 

down  until  late  next  morning.  Rogers  was  obdu- 
rate; he  was  pledged  to  both  Gwin  and  Weller, 
but  did  not  so  declare  to  Broderick.  On  the 
contrary,  he  said:  "I  will  not  vote  for  you,  for 
when  the  Vigilance  Committee  was  running  the 
city  your  friends  wanted  to  know  where  you  stood, 
whether  for  or  against  them,  and  no  one  knew." 
But  Broderick  only  replied:  "When  you  come 
to  San  Francisco  I  wish  you  would  come  and  see 
me/'  "No,"  said  the  sturdy  Rogers;  "I  am  not 
going  to  the  city.  I  am  going  to  Sacramento." 

Of  course,  Broderick  guarded  silence  respecting 
the  committee,  for  it  was  indeed  a  double-edged 
blade;  besides  it  was  over,  and  what  man  will  risk 
his  political  future  over  past  questions?  The  pres- 
ent problems  are  always  sufficiently  absorbing. 

Here,  perhaps,  I  may  advert  to  the  story  of 
George  Wilkes  and  Broderick.  Wilkes  was  of 
New  York,  a  brilliant  writer  and  bubbling  Bohe- 
mian, but  erratic  and  unreliable,  with  a  peculiar 
reputation.  He  had  known  Broderick  in  New 
York  and  followed  him  to  California,  where  he 
became  one  of  the  latter 's  political  associates  and 
adjutants.  After  a  while  they  quarrelled  and 
Wilkes  forthwith  returned  to  New  York.  The 
idea  or  thought  was  industriously  propagated 
that  Wilkes  was  Broderick' s  brains;  that  every 
wise  action  was  due  to  the  prompting  of  Wilkes 
and  every  unwise  deed  ascribed  to  Broderick  him- 
F1431 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

self.  I  can  discover  no  foundation  for  his  assump- 
tion. Wilkes  left  California  in  1854,  and  certainly 
my  readers  will  coincide  that  Broderick' s  career 
thereafter  indicated  no  abatement  in  energy  or 
judgment.  Doubtless  in  the  earlier  California 
years,  when  a  meagre  opinion,  based  on  ignorance, 
prevailed  as  to  Broderick's  mental  and  educational 
acquirements,  a  misconception  of  the  man  existed, 
and  it  took  time  to  dissipate  this  prejudice. 

General  Worthington  relates  that  when  he  came 
to  California  he  imbibed  the  common  sentiment 
against  Broderick  as  a  shoulder-hitter  and  brawling 
ruffian.  One  of  his  new-made  friends,  Colonel 
Monroe,  a  grand  nephew  of  President  Monroe 
and,  of  course,  parenthetically,  a  federal  official, 
was  a  close  personal  friend  of  Broderick. 

Worthington  could  not  comprehend  an  intimacy 
between  the  aristocratic  scion  of  the  South  and  the 
knock-down  and  drag-out  leader  of  the  masses 
from  New  York  City.  On  an  occasion  he  and 
Monroe  met  several  men  at  a  hotel.  Broderick 
was  one  of  these;  Worthington  had  never  seen 
him.  When  presented  mutually,  Broderick's 
naine  was  pronounced  so  indistinctly  that  the 
general  did  not  hear.-  After  a  short  conversation 
they  separated,  and  Worthington  said  to  Monroe: 
"Who  was  the  remarkably  affable  and  intelligent 
gentleman  with  whom  we  have  been  talking?" 
He  was  amazed  to  hear  that  it  was  Broderick. 
[144] 


Senator 

Their  friendship  dated  from  that  moment,  and, 
when  garlanded  with  the  silvered  radiance  of 
eighty-four  years,  Worthington  could  refer  to  his 
dead  leader  and  the  pathetic  end  only  in  broken 
accents  and  with  humid  eyes. 

The  election  of  1856  included  three  parties. 
The  presidential  nominee  of  the  nascent  Repub- 
lican party  was  Fremont,  the  California  path- 
finder and  the  first  man  to  represent  the  state  in 
the  national  senate.  The  American  party  was 
dying,  almost  as  soon  as  born,  and,  by  now,  was 
moribund,  while  the  Republicans  were  alert  and 
bold  with  the  fervor,  energy  and  devotion  common 
to  new  religious  and  new  political  principles.  The 
Democrats  won,  as  usual,  but  for  the  last  time  in 
many  years. 

Buchanan  was  chosen  President,  and  in  Cali- 
fornia all  the  state  officials,  as  well  as  the  legis- 
lature, were  safely  Democratic.  The  Vigilance 
Committee  carried  and  held  the  citadel  of  San 
Francisco,  but  did  not  intervene  in  state  affairs. 

An  early  estimate  of  the  legislators-elect  gave 
Broderick  a  preponderating  majority  of  the  Demo- 
crats, though  not  by  any  means  of  the  whole  legis- 
lature, for  that  body  embraced  in  its  membership 
Know-Nothings,  Whigs  and  Republicans,  as  well 
as  Democrats,  the  latter  outnumbering  all  the 
others  combined. 

His  triumphant  position  was  recognized  to  the 
[1451 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

degree  that  when  he  returned  to  the  city  in  Novem- 
ber, directly  after  the  elections,  he  received  an  ova- 
tion as  if  he  already  sat  upon  the  throne.  It  was 
a  gauge  of  his  ultimate  success.  The  legislature 
met  early  in  January,  1857.  The  condition  and 
the  problem  confronting  Broderick  and  his  oppo- 
nents were  these:  Two  senators  were  to  be 
chosen.  I  say  two  because  Gwin's  seat  had  been 
untenanted  since  1855  and  Weller's  period  of 
six  years  terminated  in  March,  1857.  So,  the 
man  chosen  for  Gwin's  place  would  hold  only  four 
years,  whilst  the  successor  to  Weller  would  serve 
six  solid,  long,  important  years,  pregnant  even 
then  with  war  and  death,  with  the  welfare,  nay, 
even  the  life  of  the  great  republic;  and,  therefore, 
the  six  years'  prize  was  the  highest  reward  of  the 
tournament,  and  for  it  the  knights  prepared  their 
lances  and  armor.  Broderick  found  a  half-dozen 
antagonists,  each  of  them  with  votes,  but  the 
votes  controlled  by  no  one,  nor  even  two  allied 
forces  could  outnumber  his  warriors.  His  sup- 
porters had  remained  loyal  and  faithful  during 
the  five  years'  campaign,  marked  with  more 
defeats  than  victories,  but  never  despairing  and 
never  rebellious.  With  the  enemy  divided  and 
their  champion  in  arms,  they  were  buoyant, 
vigilant  and  energetic.  One  of  them  assumed 
the  garb  and  duties  of  a  waiter  at  a  secret  con- 
sultation of  the  allies,  and  thus  hearing  projects 
[146] 


Senator 

discussed,  promptly  divulged  them  to  Broderick; 
only  after  the  campaign  ended  did  the  conclave 
know  who  had  betrayed  their  counsels.  But 
Broderick  had  heavy  political  debts  accruing 
during  the  past  years  of  struggle  which  he  would 
liquidate.  What  with  the  American  party  success 
of  '55  and  the  Vigilantes'  triumph  of  '56  in  San 
Francisco  he  had  been  completely  dislodged  from 
that  old  haven,  and  his  faithful  retainers  were 
wandering  in  the  cold,  cold  world  with  not  even  a 
mantle  of  their  master  to  protect  them.  He  had 
never  a  mouthful  of  the  federal  provender,  for 
his  influence  was  local,  not  national.  He  was 
unknown  in  Washington,  and  the  senators  in  the 
saddle  very  naturally  gathered  the  game.  The 
state  administration  was  Know-No  thing,  or  Ameri- 
can, and  though  in  a  condition  of  catalepsy,  all 
the  grapes  were  garnered  and  devoured  by  the 
few  remaining  members  of  that  association.  On 
the  other  side,  however,  the  new  national  adminis- 
tration was  Democratic,  and  so  was  Broderick. 
It  was  customary  at  the  commencement  of  each 
four  years  of  a  presidency  to  replace  the  federal 
incumbents  by  friends  of  the  new  regime.  So, 
without  impropriety  or  injustice,  according  to 
the  recognized  political  tenets,  one  could  foresee 
an  entire  and  radical  change  emanating  from  the 
White  House,  involving  naval  officers,  appraisers, 
mint,  revenue  service,  postmasters,  treasurers  and 
[1471 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

other  national  employees  —  enough  patronage  to 
content  even  his  hungry  supporters.  And  as  very 
few,  indeed,  of  the  "  Virginia  Poor-House"  collec- 
tion supported  him,  Broderick  could  contemplate 
their  funeral  with  equanimity.  I  have  said  it 
was  enough  for  his  people;  but  only  if  it  were 
not  divided.  One  is  only  one-half  of  two,  and 
one-half  would  not  be  sufficient.  He  must  have 
all. 

In  demanding  the  resignation  of  the  patronage 
he  saw  no  injustice.  For  all  the  years  that  Gwin 
had  been  senator  none  but  pro-slavery  men  had 
received  office  from  his  generosity.  There  was 
but  a  single  exception;  and  of  those  pro-slavery 
men  the  greater  number  were  Southerners.  Bro- 
derick could  now  reward  his  friends,  remember 
Northern  Democrats,  and  equalize  the  sectional 
distribution  of  appointments. 

He  examined  these  various  problems  carefully 
in  the  recesses  of  his  silent,  reflective  brain,  for, 
like  Napoleon  before  Marengo,  he  realized  the 
value  of  his  position,  and  finally  determined  to 
demand  not  one  but  all  the  trophies.  He  resolved 
to  be  elected  as  senator  for  the  long  term  of  six 
years,  to  choose  his  colleague  for  the  shorter  period 
of  four  years  and  to  bind  this  associate  to  surren- 
der the  patronage. 

First  he  must  be  elected  for  the  long  term.  It 
is  true  that  all  precedents  pointed  to  the  filling 
[148] 


Senator 

of  Gwin's  seat  first,  which  had  been  vacant  since 
1855,  and  his  successor  would  only  retain  the  office 
four  years;  for,  though  the  term  was  six  years,  yet 
it  would  date,  according  to  the  statutes,  from  the 
expiration  of  G win's  incumbency.  But  prece- 
dents were  made  to  be  broken  and  Broderick  was 
already  proficient  in  the  art. 

With  six  men  clamoring  for  the  senatorship  it 
would  go  hard,  indeed,  if  he  could  not  clutch  the 
few  votes  necessary  to  his  success.  It  must  not 
be  thought  that  these  aspirants  were  not  men 
of  " light  and  leading."  Weller  was  afterwards 
governor;  Latham  became  both  governor  and 
senator,  filling  Broderick's  post  after  his  death; 
McDougall  also  ended  his  fitful  career  as  senator, 
and  Field  assumed  the  ermine  of  a  justice  of  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court. 

The  attrition  of  elements  from  over  the  entire 
globe  that  clashed  in  these  early  years  of  the  golden 
state  threw  the  best  and  brightest  upward  and 
forward.  Up  to  now  the  Broderick-Gwin  feud  or 
vendetta  was  a  misnomer.  It  became  a  stern 
verity  later  when  the  two  men  sat  together  in  the 
Senate  and  differed  on  national  questions;  but  at* 
this  epoch  both  were  fighting  all  comers  as  well 
as  each  other.  It  is  quite  true  that  all  California 
knew  Broderick's  inexorable,  implacable,  unyield- 
ing resolve,  and  all  California  knew  that  Gwin 
desired  to  return  to  his  exalted  station;  but  while 
[1491 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

these  two  were  more  distinctive,  the  other  men  I 
have  enumerated  were  by  no  means  negligible 
quantities.  I  have  shown  that  in  the  legislature 
of  1854  they  had  united  with  Gwin  against  Bro- 
derick because  he  was  the  stronger.  Again  in 
1855  they  coalesced  with  Broderick  against  Gwin, 
for  then  Gwin  was  more  potent. 

In  1856  the  Know-Nothings  preponderated,  and 
all  these  warring  Democrats  allied  themselves  like 
everlasting  friends  to  prevent  the  foolish  and  inex- 
perienced American  party  virgins  from  taking  the 
lighted  lamp.  And  now  in  1857,  for  the  fourth 
time,  the  contestants  assembled  in  the  legislative 
arena.  Let  me  also  add  that  sectional  sentiments 
controlled  the  situation  to  but  a  very  slight  degree. 

The  war  had  not  yet  begun,  not  even  in  Cali- 
fornia. Events  trod  on,  one  after  another,  faster 
and  faster,  with  startling  celerity  witfiin  the  com- 
ing years,  but  the  shadows  of  the  veiled  future 
did  not  disturb  the  Sacramento  gathering.  On 
the  contrary,  men  met  in  the  camps  and  mountains 
and  formed  durable  and  sympathetic  friendships 
which  began  and  culminated  under  the  California 
sunshine  until  the  end,  regardless  of  political  or 
personal  antecedents.  All  that  happened  in  the 
East  was  forgotten  and  the  new  amities  created 
out  of  the  rising  West  endured  forever.  Broder- 
ick's  principal  lieutenant,  Judge  Frank  Tilford, 
was  a  Kentuckian,  and  Randolph  and  Crittenden, 
[150] 


Senator 

related  to  well-known  Southern  families,  were  his 
staunch  partisans,  while  several  of  Gwin's  most 
ardent  supporters  were  Northerners.  Neither 
Gwin  nor  Broderick  had  expressed  himself  as 
personally  hostile  or  antipathetic.  No  one  of  the 
several  aspirants  had  placed  himself  by  ill-timed 
word  or  fruitless  action  beyond  the  line  of  negotia- 
tion or  compromise,  so  when  Broderick  confronted 
the  array  he  was  free  to  make  any  combination 
or  combinations  as  his  faculties  and  his  friends 
commended. 

Directly  the  legislature  assembled  a  Democratic 
caucus  was  summoned  to  meet  the  third  evening 
thereafter.  Broderick' s  supporters  announced  that 
the  caucus  would  be  asked  to  vote  for  the  long 
term  first  and  he  would  be  a  candidate  for  that 
station.  What  were  the  others  to  do?  He  was 
stronger  by  far  than  any  single  opponent.  Why 
then  incur  his  enmity,  especially  as  he  hit  hard 
and  when  the  second  seat  remained,  even  if  only 
for  four  years?  He  could  afford  to  be  neutral. 
They  could  hardly  combine  on  one  of  themselves. 
That  would  not  quench  the  losers'  sorrow  and  they 
would  gain  no  more  by  that  than  in  beating 
Broderick. 

Several  attempts  were  made  to  win  his  favor 

for  one  or  the  other,  notably  for  Latham,  most 

of  whose  supporters  were  also  the  adherents  of 

Broderick;  but  he  very  sagely  held  himself  aloof. 

[  151 1 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Why  not?  Like  Miltiades  at  Marathon  he  was 
their  second  choice.  On  Thursday  evening  all 
the  Democrats  in  the  legislature,  to  the  number 
of  seventy-nine,  met  in  caucus  and  adopted  a 
resolution  to  ballot  for  the  long  term  first.  The 
division  stood  forty-two  to  thirty-seven. 

Broderick  was  immediately  nominated  for  sen- 
ator; this  much  covered  six  years,  his  only  oppo- 
nent being  Weller,  who  was  defeated  by  the  same 
vote.  Not  much,  it  is  true;  only  five,  but  enough, 
as  said  Mercutio. 

The  very  next  day,  January  10, 1857,  the  legisla- 
ture, in  joint  convention  assembled,  elected  David 
Colbreth  Broderick  as  United  States  senator  from 
California  for  six  years,  to  begin  March  4,  1857. 

The  balloting  stood: 

David  C.  Broderick 79 

J.  W.  Coffroth 16 

Edward  Stanley 14 

L.  Bynm 1 

J.  B.  Weller 1 

He  received  every  Democratic  vote.  The  offi- 
cial journal  says  that  "the  announcement  of  the 
election  of  Mr.  Broderick  was  received  with 
tremendous  applause." 

One  of  the  beautiful  classic  legends  of  Greece 

(I  wish  there  were  more  of  them)  relates  that  three 

golden  apples  were  taken  from  the  triply  watched 

garden  of  the  Hesperides.     But  for  the  combatants 

1 152] 


Senator 

in  Sacramento  there  existed  only  two,  and  one 
had  already  fallen  to  Broderick.  Therefore,  the 
struggle  for  the  remaining  golden  fruit  of  the 
senatorship  was  fierce  and  unpausing.  The  town 
was  small,  the  hotels  few  and  in  near  proximity. 
Each  chevalier  had  his  headquarters  with  patrols 
and  scouts  to  guard  his  own  force  from  treachery 
and  observe  the  movements  of  the  enemy.  Sacra- 
mento was  overflowing  with  Californians  drawn 
from  the  whole  state,  who  came  to  help  their 
favorite  or  to  survey  the  field  of  honor.  Every 
motive  or  argument  of  influence,  of  friendship, 
hate,  love,  anger,  old  feuds,  old  friendships,  bitter 
memories  and  pleasant  ones,  too,  were  conjured, 
nourished,  cherished  and  thrown  in  the  swaying 
balances.  We  who  float  in  these  placid,  smooth, 
ambitionless  waters  today  find  it  extremely  diffi- 
cult to  realize  the  fierce  rivalry,  the  intensity  of 
purpose  and  the  sleepless  energy  of  those  few  short 
days.  Every  motive,  as  I  have  said,  was  called 
into  play  except  the  vulgar,  debasing  one  of  money 
bribery.  Not  a  single  taint  of  corruption  stains 
the  escutcheons  of  those  gentlemen  who  struggled 
so  well  and  valiantly  for  their  chosen  chieftains. 
Votes  were  changed,  but  the  reasons  were  well 
understood,  and  those  reasons  were  honorable  as 
well  as  human.  The  caste  of  political  prostitutes 
was  then  unknown,  and  men  continued  free 
Americans. 

[153] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

They  charged  home,  brandishing  lances  and 
swords,  but  fairly,  with  faces  to  the  foe.  It  is 
said  that  for  five  nights  and  days  Sacramento  was 
as  active  by  night  as  by  day.  No  one  seemed  to 
sleep.  The  Civil  War  was  not  yet  begun,  but 
the  blood-red  veil  of  the  future  had  commenced 
to  chill  the  air  and  cool  friendships.  The  days  to 
come  were  portentous,  and  these  men,  strong 
and  self-reliant,  were  anxious  to  be  leaders  among 
the  elect. 

Finally  they  stood,  panting  and  exhausted,  con- 
fronting each  other.  The  five  days'  struggle 
culminated  in  a  deadlock;  no  one  had  a  majority 
and  only  superior  power  and  prestige,  hitherto 
unfelt,  could  cause  victory  to  appear.  Broderick 
had  remained  aloof  from  the  fray,  observing  the 
daily  and  nightly  assaults  and  parries,  moodily 
biding  the  hour. 

It  came,  and  the  embattled  warriors,  like  sup- 
pliants, offered  him  fealty.  Give  the  senatorship, 
that  bawble  solely,  and  he  could  have  aught  else. 
Patronage,  prestige,  all  were  his.  They  were 
ready  to  accept  the  seat  on  any  terms  whatever 
that  he  should  impose.  He  chose  Gwin.  I  have 
hitherto  said  that  between  Broderick  and  Gwin, 
up  to  their  joint  election,  there  was  no  personal 
or  political  antipathy.  That  came  afterwards, 
and  one  of  the  potent  reasons  shall  presently 
appear.  Otherwise,  why  did  he  not  select  as  his 
[154] 


Senator 

colleague  some  other  candidate?  That  he  could 
have  done  so  is  manifest.  And  his  choice  of  Gwin 
was,  from  the  standpoint  of  elevated  statesman- 
ship, a  judicious  one.  They  represented  the  two 
extremes,  political  and  sectional,  of  Democracy, 
and,  therefore,  their  friendship  should  allay  past 
jealousies  arising  from  these  causes. 

Gwin  had  already  served  in  the  Senate,  and 
his  acquaintance  and  influence  earnestly  and 
sincerely  given  to  Broderick  should  render  the 
younger  man's  beginnings  in  his  new  sphere  more 
agreeable. 

Broderick  at  thirty-seven  was  the  second 
youngest  member  of  the  Senate.  Gwin  was  fifty- 
two.  They  held  a  secret  conference,  and  at  the 
next  caucus  Gwin  received  a  majority,  and  the 
day  following  was  elected  senator  for  four  years, 
until  March,  1861.  On  this  same  day — namely, 
the  13th  of  January,  1857  —  Gwin  published, 
over  his  signature,  "an  address  to  the  people  of 
California": 

"I  have  thought  it  proper,  in  view  of  the  sena- 
torial contest,  which  has  resulted  in  the  election 
of  Mr.  David  C.  Broderick  and  myself  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  to  state  to  the  people 
of  California  certain  circumstances  and  facts 
which  compose  a  part  of  the  history  of  that 
arduous  struggle. 

"My  election  was  attended  by  circumstances 
[155] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

which  rarely  occur  in  the  course  of  such  contests. 
A  representative,  whose  evil  destiny  it  is  to  be 
the  indirect  dispenser  of  federal  patronage,  will 
strangely  miscalculate  if  he  expects  to  evade  the 
malice  of  disappointed  men. 

"I  had  learned  in  the  struggle  that  he  who  aids 
in  conferring  great  official  power  upon  individuals 
does  not  always  secure  friends,  and  that  the  force 
of  deep  personal  obligations  may  even  be  converted 
into  an  incentive  to  hostility  and  hate.  In  a  word, 
to  the  federal  patronage  in  the  state  do  I  attribute 
in  a  great  degree  the  malice  and  hostile  energy 
which,  after  years  of  faithful  public  service  and 
toward  the  closing  period  of  life,  have  nearly  cost 
me  the  endorsement  of  a  re-election  to  the  United 
States  Senate.  From  patronage,  then,  and  the 
curse  it  entails  I  shall  gladly  in  future  turn,  and 
my  sole  labor  and  ambition  henceforth  shall  be  to 
deserve  well  of  the  state  and  to  justify  the  course 
of  the  legislature  in  honoring  me  a  second  time  as 
a  representative  of  its  interests. 

"I  have  hinted  above  at  other  aid  than  that 
received  from  those  whom  I  have  regarded  as 
friends;  I  refer  to  the  timely  assistance  accorded 
to  me  by  Mr.  Broderick  and  his  friends. 

"  Although  at  one  time  a  rival  and  recognizing 
in  him  a  fierce  but  manly  opponent,  I  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  acknowledge  in  this  public  manner  his 
forgetfulness  of  all  grounds  of  dissension  and 
[156] 


Senator 

hostility  in  what  he  considered  a  step  necessary 
to  allay  the  strifes  and  discords  which  had  dis- 
tracted the  party  and  the  state.  To  him  and  to 
the  attachment  of  his  friends  I  conceive  in  a  great 
degree  my  election  is  due ;  and  I  feel  bound  to  him 
and  them  in  common  efforts  to  unite  and  heal, 
when  the  result  heretofore  has  been  to  break 
down  and  destroy." 

This  clear  and  intelligent  document  made  quite 
evident  to  the  least  discriminating  the  price  Gwin 
paid  for  the  senatorship.  It  was  neither  obscure 
nor  dubious.  It  was  addressed  to  the  people. 
Two  days  previously,  however,  before  he  was 
elected,  he  presented  to  Broderick  the  annexed 
letter. 

"SACRAMENTO  CITY,  JANUARY  11, 1857. 
"HoN.  D.  C.  BRODERICK. 

"  DEAR  SIR, — I  am  likely  to  be  the  victim  of  the 
unparalleled  treachery  of  those  who  have  been 
placed  in  power  by  my  aid  and  exertion. 

"The  most  potential  portion  of  the  federal 
patronage  is  in  the  hands  of  those  who,  by  every 
principle  that  should  govern  men  of  honor,  should 
be  my  supporters  instead  of  my  enemies,  and  it  is 
being  used  for  my  destruction.  My  participation 
in  the  distribution  of  this  patronage  has  been  the 
source  of  numberless  slanders  upon  me  that  have 
fostered  a  prejudice  in  the  public  mind  against  me 
[1571 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

and  have  created  enmities  that  have  been  destruc- 
tive to  my  happiness  and  peace  of  mind  for  years. 
It  has  entailed  untold  evils  upon  me,  and  while 
in  the  Senate  I  will  not  recommend  a  single  indi- 
vidual to  appointment  to  office  in  the  state.  Pro- 
vided I  am  elected  you  shall  have  the  exclusive 
control  of  this  patronage,  so  far  as  I  am  con- 
cerned; and  in  its  distribution  I  shall  only  ask 
that  it  may  be  used  with  magnanimity  arid  not 
for  the  advantage  of  those  who  have  been  our 
mutual  enemies  and  unwearied  in  their  efforts  to 
destroy  us. 

"This  determination  is  unalterable;  and  in 
making  this  declaration  I  do  not  expect  you  to 
support  me  for  that  reason,  or  in  any  way  to  be 
governed  by  it;  but  as  I  have  been  betrayed  by 
those  who  should  have  been  my  friends,  I  am  in 
a  measure  powerless  myself  and  depend  upon 
your  magnanimity. 

"Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

"WM.M.GwiN." 

The  existence  and  contents  of  this  "  scarlet " 
letter  Broderick  never  divulged,  though  at  times 
he  had  rare  provocation,  for  two  years  and  a  half. 
A  month  later  he  was  slain! 

On  his  return  as  a  senator  to  San  Francisco  he 
was  received  like  a  triumphing  Roman.  Proces- 
sions, addresses,  illuminations,  the  roar  of  ordnance 
[158] 


Senator 

and  the  whole  town  to  acclaim.  In  several  of  the 
interior  cities,  as  in  Benicia,  special  entertain- 
ments were  presented.  It  should  have  been 
soothing  to  his  perturbed  spirit,  for  it  was  generous 
and  spontaneous.  Those  who  had  opposed  him 
most  strenuously  during  the  years  chivalrously 
said:  "He  has  won  fairly  and  manfully  in  fair 
fighting,  and  he  deserves  his  success." 

But  Broderick  was  not  unduly  elated.  He 
received  the  plaudits  with  dignity  and  in  silence. 
Now  that  he  sat  in  the  chariot  of  the  sun,  would 
he  prove  able  to  guide  its  course  among  the  stars? 
After  winning  life's  goal,  there  be  disappointments 
ever  and  oft.  The  stimulus  of  seeking  is  more 
soul-stirring  than  the  pleasure  of  possessing. 


[159] 


CHAPTER  IX 

WASHINGTON 

THE  two  senators  departed  from  California 
together,  going  by  steamer,  via  the  Isthmus 
route,  which  was  relatively  speedy  and  more 
comfortable,  the  voyage  to  New  York  occupying 
somewhat  less  than  a  month.  Gwin  continued 
on  to  Washington,  while  his  brother  senator 
remained  in  New  York  for  a  few  short  days.  The 
latter's  former  friends,  personal  and  political, 
welcomed  his  advent  with  warm  demonstrations. 
The  distinction  he  had  achieved  and  the  redemp- 
tion of  the  assurance  announced  on  his  departure 
eight  years  previously  that  he  would  never  return 
"except  as  United  States  senator  from  Calif ornia" 
were  recalled  and  recognized. 

He  was  cordially  and  heartily  greeted.  The 
municipal  authorities  adopted  resolutions  welcom- 
ing him  to  New  York  and  he  was  the  guest  at 
several  banquets  where  were  gathered  the  city's 
best.  The  New  Yorkers  seemed  to  regard  him  as 
one  of  them  and  his  success  a  personal  triumph. 
Yet,  in  perusing  their  encomiums,  one  cannot 
discern  a  very  strong  note  of  surprise.  One  might 
say  that  it  was  expected,  so  strong  a  sense  of  his 
personal  ability  and  energy  had  he  inspired. 
[160] 


Washington 

His  New  York  friends  seemed  to  think  he  would 
move  farther  and  higher.  But  he  hastened  from 
these  vanities,  as  he  had  from  home  tributes,  and 
journeyed  to  Washington,  where  his  new  life  would 
have  its  inception.  Here  he  was  presently  to  know 
how  void  and  futile  become  written  promises 
when  the  will  to  execute  them  is  wanting  and  how 
much  larger  were  national  than  state  issues. 

Congress  assembled  in  March  and,  in  accord 
with  the  Senate's  unwritten  mandate,  he  found 
himself  condemned  to  silence  in  that  chamber  for 
the  entire  session.  He  was  received,  however,  with 
more  attention  than  was  usually  tendered  to  a  new 
senator,  and  one  so  young. 

His  indomitable  struggle  and  final  success  had 
been  observed  and  heralded  in  the  East  and  South. 
Everything  transpiring  in  that  far  California,  near 
the  dying  sun,  was  of  more  than  fleeting  interest 
to  the  older  commonwealths.  The  rumor  that 
he  had  dictated  the  election  of  his  colleague  and 
brought  him  "to  Washington  in  chains"  was 
piquant  and  fruitful  of  comment.  Especially  the 
few  Republican  senators  who  represented  the 
beginnings  of  that  patriotic  organization  took  him 
to  their  hearts.  They  had  been  Democrats  or 
Whigs  before  apostatizing.  This  young  man  of 
serious  demeanor  and  plebeian  Northern  stock 
had  a  future,  and  in  the  portentous  events  that 
the  wise  felt  impending,  what  might  he  not  do, 
[161] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

perhaps  at  their  side?  Wilson  was  a  shoemaker, 
Johnson  a  tailor.  Both  were  then  senators  and 
one  subsequently  became  Vice-president  and  the 
other  President  of  the  United  States.  Still,  these 
were  the  rare,  unique  exceptions.  No  one  except 
of  superlative  birth  and  breeding  was  considered 
eligible.  We  have  changed  all  that,  let  us  hope, 
for  the  better. 

Broderick  was  the  first  senator  sprung  from  the 
masses,  far  more  distinctly  so  than  Johnson  and 
Wilson,  and  his  personality  was  infinitely  more 
commanding.  If  it  be  asked  why,  then,  did  they 
advance  higher,  I  will  reply  that  they  lived,  but 
he  died. 

He  was  born  in  the  capital  and  the  Washing- 
tonians  celebrated  the  coming  of  "their  senator" 
with  Roman  freedom.  I  am  not  aware  that  they 
have  since  had  an  opportunity  to  repeat  the  fes- 
tival. But  Gwin  had  friends,  sage  and  astute 
friends,  who  had  moved  in  the  changing  political 
currents  of  the  nation's  capital  for  years,  and 
who,  above  all,  were  known  to  the  President. 
Broderick's  reception  by  Buchanan  was  not 
cordial;  as  he  said  after  his  first  visit:  "It  was 
cold  without,  but  icy  within."  The  polished 
old  bachelor,  who  preferred  knee  buckles  to 
breeches  and  a  powdered  wig  to  nature's  cover- 
ing, was  not  impelled  toward  the  stern,  haughty 
young  senator,  who,  with  Western  brusqueness 
[162] 


Washington 

demanded,  rather    than   requested,    presidential 
favors. 

It  was  rumored  and  believed,  both  in  California, 
and  Washington,  that  Broderick  had  promised 
more  persons  than  there  were  positions.  The 
names  of  three  individuals  who  had  been  assured 
by  him  of  succession  to  the  same  office  were 
uttered  aloud  so  that  all  could  hear.  Yet  only 
one  could  win.  Doubtless  it  was  true.  He  may 
have  followed  the  precept  of  Euripides: 

Be  just;  unless  a  kingdom  tempts,  to  break  the  laws, 
For  Sovereign  power  alone  can  justify  the  cause. 

When  next  Broderick  visited  the  White  House 
and  suggested  a  certain  appointment  he  was  told 
by  the  President  that  it  would  be  made  provided 
the  senator  would  submit  the  application,  in 
writing,  with  his  signature.  Broderick  asked  if 
this  had  hitherto  been  the  rule.  Buchanan  said 
it  had  never  been  practised  by  any  of  his  prede- 
cessors, but  he  chose  to  establish  the  innovation 
for  his  own  protection  and  the  service  of  the  state. 
He  added  that  Broderick  was  the  first  man  of  whom 
he  asked  this  pledge,  but  that,  of  course,  it  would 
be  applicable  to  every  member  of  Congress.  Bro- 
derick left  the  White  House  in  anger  and  fury.  He 
saw  too  clearly  the  whence  and  why  this  unpar- 
alleled stain  on  the  word  of  representatives  of  the 
nation,  and  recognized  the  source  which  had 
inspired  the  docile  brain  of  America's  chief.  To 
[1631 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

checkmate  him,  Gwin  and  his  friends  had  invoked 
a  radical  alteration  of  the  customs  and  courtesies 
existing  between  President  and  Congress  since  the 
foundation  of  the  republic! 

This  condition,  as  then  instituted,  remains 
unaltered,  and  is  just  and  equitable;  but  it  first 
sprang  from  the  fertile  brain  of  Broderick's  ene- 
mies. He  repaired  to  the  White  House  again  and 
again,  but  was  met  by  the  placid  obstinacy  of  the 
President. 

There  was  a  legend  current,  which  may  be 
apocryphal,  that  after  leaving  the  President  on 
his  last  visit  Broderick  stood  on  the  steps  of  the 
White  House  enclosure,  facing  Lafayette  Park,  and 
denounced  Buchanan  in  language  more  pictur- 
esque than  polite.  Like  his  friend,  Judge  Field, 
he  possessed  a  superlative  vocabulary  of  adjectival 
expletives.  He  never  again  entered  the  portals  of 
the  executive  mansion,  and  he  never  again  asked 
a  favor  of  the  President.  The  latter  made  his 
California  appointments  leisurely  and  with  delib- 
eration. Scarce  a  single  one  of  the  federal  horde 
could  be  considered  other  than  an  opponent  of 
Broderick.  In  fact,  Buchanan  out-Gwinned  Gwin 
and  displayed  personal  animosity  to  the  junior 
California  senator  most  conspicuously. 

Broderick  stayed  in  Washington  only  a  few 
days  and  hastened  home  to  engage  in  the  nomina- 
tions and  elections  during  the  summer  and  fall. 
[164] 


Washington 

The  convention  was  organized  against  him.  The 
nominees  were  his  foes,  with  the  solitary  exception 
of  Supreme  Judge  Field,  and  Broderick  had  but 
this  single  success  to  lessen  his  chagrin. 

Field  was  sworn  as  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  state  of  California  on  January  1,  1858. 
Judge  Terry  had  become  chief  justice  a  few  months 
earlier,  succeeding  on  the  death  of  the  previous 
incumbent.  Field  and  Terry  thus  sat  side  by 
side  on  the  Supreme  Bench,  the  latter  as  presiding 
judge.  It  is  proper  to  align  this  statement  clearly, 
for  it  tells  us  that  the  two  men  knew  each  other 
very  well  indeed.  They  were  not  strangers  when 
they  met  and  clashed  years  after,  and  the  knowl- 
edge of  each  other's  characteristics  must  have 
qualified  their  actions. 

The  rupture  of  Broderick  with  the  President 
was  not  yet  fully  known  in  California  nor  its 
gravity  appreciated.  Those  of  his  supporters 
who  had  anticipated  official  rewards  looked  at 
his  empty  hands  with  equanimity  and  made  little 
complaint,  much  less,  perhaps,  than  they  might 
have  been  justified  in  doing. 

After  all,  there  did  not  appear  to  be  so  much 
selfishness  as  one  might  have  expected.  The  men 
who  had  fought  his  battles  and  carried  him  to 
success  were  cheerful  and  contented.  He  was 
senator,  and  they  waited  to  see  his  wings  spread 
like  others  in  the  national  halls.  He  was  senator 
[165] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

and  they  had  won ;  as  for  the  rest,  it  did  not  matter 
much.  California  was  gentle,  gracious,  lovely, 
abounding,  and  there  were  many  other  avocations 
besides  playing  gentleman  in  federal  boudoirs. 
A  philosophic  fortitude  under  disappointment  is 
not  difficult  when  the  disappointment  is  easily 
compensated. 

For  the  rest,  Broderick  remained  very  quiet, 
attending  to  his  personal  interests  that  had  been 
neglected  during  his  engrossing  political  campaigns. 
He  was  indebted  quite  largely,  and  most  of  the 
water  lots  that  he  possessed  and  which  were  his 
main  holdings  were  unimproved.  He  filled  some, 
sold  a  few  and  built  on  others.  They  had  been 
chosen  with  rare  judgment  and  were  rapidly 
increasing  in  value  as  the  city  extended  eastward 
into  the  bay.  The  shallow  mud  flats  were  filled 
with  sand,  wooden  piles  driven  deep  down  to  a 
firm  foundation,  heavy  planks  fastened  to  the 
piles,  and  on  this  superstructure  strong  brick 
edifices  were  constructed.  Streets  led  into  the 
waters,  and  the  quays  advanced  fully  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  the  westerly  point  of  debarkation 
in  the  record  year  of  1849. 

All  this  promised  to  make  him  a  wealthy  man. 
The  remarkable  purity  of  his  life  and  the  sim- 
plicity of  his  wants  made  his  personal  expenses 
quite  limited.  He  applied  himself  severely  to  a 
careful  reading  of  instructive  works.  He  was 
[166] 


Washington 

fond  of  poetry  and  the  contemplative  Shelley 
was  his  favorite.  He  had  a  private,  secluded 
apartment,  where  night  after  night  he  studied  like 
a  school  boy.  Washington  had  taught  him  his 
deficiencies. 

But  he  contributed  largely  to  political  require- 
ments and  assisted  his  friends  when  asked,  which 
was  infrequently.  Independence  and  self-reliance 
characterized  the  young  men  who  made  the 
California  of  the  fifties.  "Old  Gwin"  was  the 
universal  appellation  of  Senator  Gwin,  and  yet 
he  was  only  fifty-two  when  elected  as  Broderick's 
colleague,  and  he  had  been  distinguished  since 
the  state  was  born.  The  average  age  of  the 
arrivals  in  1849,  when  the  immigration  exceeded 
that  of  any  preceding  or  subsequent  year,  was 
twenty-five  years,  and  1857  was  only  eight  years 
later.  The  state  was  settling  fast.  The  human 
tide  that  flowed  in  1848,  upon  the  gold  discovery, 
had  not  yet  ebbed.  Nearly  every  steamer  from 
Panama  brought  a  full  complement  of  passengers 
and  others  came  in  different  ways  over  seas  and 
over  lands.  At  first  they  came  alone,  but  now 
they  brought  families,  women,  children  and  other 
relatives,  who  came  to  abide.  The  fallacy  that 
California  was  arid,  barren  and  only  good  for 
gold  had  vanished.  Cereals  were  largely  culti- 
vated, the  production  of  fruits  and  wines  increased 
and  their  quality  improved.  The  sweetness  and 
[1671 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

softness  of  summer  life,  under  the  slopes  of  the 
Sierras,  with  atmosphere  anointed  by  the  balsam 
from  the  pines,  enthralled  and  fascinated. 

Cabins  were  substituted  for  tents,  houses  for 
cabins  and  towns  for  camps.  Churches  and 
schoolhouses  appeared.  The  red  shirt  and  top 
boots  disappeared;  people  apparelled  themselves 
as  in  other  parts  of  the  world,  and  the  custom  of 
"a  man  for  breakfast"  was  abolished.  The  Vigi- 
lance Committee  in  San  Francisco  not  alone 
cleansed  that  city,  but  distributed  its  moral 
medicines  over  the  entire  state.  Crimes  dimin- 
ished markedly,  and  everywhere  the  Vigilance 
Committees  serenely  slumbered.  The  terrible 
remedy  has  never  again  been  invoked,  showing 
how  well  it  slew  the  dragon  then  rampant — today 
an  indistinct  memory. 

Only  a  single  episode  stands  forth  in  the  cam- 
paign. In  replying  to  a  political  communication, 
Broderick  observes,  "I  challenge  my  enemies  to 
produce  a  man  within  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  state  whom  I  ever  deceived  or  to  whom  I  ever 
falsified  my  word."  A  strong  asseveration  which 
would  hardly  issue  from  one  who  had  reason  to 
apprehend  the  result.  But  in  the  same  statement 
he  added  that  there  were  no  conditions  whatever 
between  Gwin  and  himself  respecting  the  federal 
patronage,  which  was  untrue  as  well  as  a  sacrific- 
ing of  self  for  one  whose  bond  he  held  and  who  had 
[168] 


Washington 

outwitted  him  at  Washington. '  Evidently  he  did 
not  seek  a  rupture  and  was  willing  to  shield  Gwin. 

He  returned  to  Washington  by  Panama  and 
was  in  his  seat  when  the  thirty-fifth  Congress 
assembled  in  December,  1857.  He  had  stepped 
from  the  rear  to  the  front,  from  a  local  to  a  national 
theatre,  from  Sacramento  to  Washington.  Grave 
and  dangerous  problems  agitated  the  country. 
Abraham  Lincoln,  a  man  of  his  own  type,  was 
rising  in  Illinois  and  preparing  for  the  contest  with 
Douglas  in  the  ensuing  year.  The  ferment  among 
people  was  shattering  the  old  aristocracy  and 
sending  men  from  the  ranks  to  become  leaders. 

A  revolutionary  spirit  pervaded  the  land.  The 
political  issues  were  momentous.  The  deprecia- 
tion of  state-bank  currency  rendered  indispensable 
a  change  in  the  monetary  system.  The  building 
of  a  railway  to  connect  the  Atlantic  coast  with  the 
Pacific  slope  was  imperative.  Statutes  to  pre- 
serve public  lands  and  secure  homesteads  for  actual 
settlers  were  demanded.  There  was  open  rebellion 
in  Utah  and  the  situation  in  Kansas  bordered  on 
civil  war.  The  Dred  Scott  decision  lately  pro- 
mulgated by  the  United  States  Supreme  Court 
had  been  extensively  circulated  throughout  the 
nation  with  bitter  comments,  denouncing  it  as 
the  unrighteous  judgment  of  a  partisan  tribunal. 

President  Buchanan  referred  in  his  message  to 
these  subjects  and  made  certain  observations  on 
[169] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

the  Kansas  question  which  at  once  caused  an 
animated  controversy,  continuing  throughout  the 
session.  The  territorial  legislature  of  Kansas  in 
February,  1857,  passed  an  act  providing  for  the 
election  of  delegates  in  June  of  the  same  year  to  a 
convention  to  meet  hi  the  following  September 
and  frame  the  state  constitution. 

But  the  legislature  wittingly  omitted  in  this 
act  to  provide  for  the  submission  by  the  convention 
to  the  people  for  ratification  of  any  instrument 
adopted  or  adapted  as  a  constitution  by  them. 
When  the  convention  chosen  in  pursuance  of  this 
provision  assembled  in  September  at  Lecompton, 
Kansas,  it  framed  a  state  constitution. 

One  article  of  this  instrument  provided  that  only 
that  portion  of  the  document  which  embraced  the 
question  as  to  whether  the  new  state  should  be 
admitted  to  the  Union  "with  or  without  slavery" 
should  be  referred  to  the  populace  for  rejection 
or  ratification.  A  second  article  largely  nullified  in 
advance  whatever  decision  might  be  given  by  the 
people  by  inserting  in  a  schedule  the  provision  that 
the  rights  of  property  in  slaves  already  within  the 
confines  of  the  territory  should  be  recognized. 

This  nullifying  clause  and  the  failure  to  refer 
the  entire  constitution  instead  of  one  or  two  quali- 
fying sections  to  the  people  for  their  action  added 
to  the  lack  of  authority  in  the  legislature  to  call 
the  convention  which  framed  the  constitution, 
[170] 


Washington 

caused  Stephen  A.  Douglas  intense  chagrin  and 
disappointment. 

Douglas  was  the  leader  of  the  national  Democ- 
racy and  had  been  the  principal  opponent  of 
Buchanan  for  the  presidential  nomination  in  the 
last  national  Democratic  convention. 

Not  then  a  pronounced  anti-slavery  advocate, 
he  resolved  to  oppose  the  admission  of  Kansas 
with  that  constitution.  It  was  difficult  for 
Northern  Democrats,  whose  life-long  political 
associates  from  the  South  had  dwelt  with  them  in 
complete  concord,  to  sever  the  ancient  ties  without 
regret  and  with  reluctance. 

To  Broderick  it  came  easier.  A  New  York  City 
man  by  training,  though  a  native  of  Washington, 
he  had  the  natural  objection  of  those  who  had 
worked  for  a  living  to  the  existence  of  servile  labor, 
and  he  objected  still  more  to  contemplate  the 
exigency  of  toiling  side  by  side  with  black  men, 
themselves  slaves.  He  remembered  that  on  the 
same  question  the  miners  in  1849,  coming  from 
all  quarters  of  the  globe,  sent  up  from  the  gold 
fields  a  resonant  shout,  "No  slaves  nor  fugitive 
labor  in  California!"  He  remembered  also  that 
Gwin,  then  a  member  of  the  California  Constitu- 
tional Convention,  had  silently  bowed  his  head  to 
this  insistent  roar  and  uttered  no  objection.  And 
now  this  same  Gwin  was  advocating  slavery  in  a 
new  state,  applying  for  admission  into  the  Union 
[171] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

under  conditions  precisely  analogous  to  those  that 
obtained  in  California  nine  years  earlier.  It  was 
true  that  he  was  then  only  an  unknown  member 
of  the  convention,  while  now  he  represented  his 
state  in  the  Senate.  The  one  was  local,  the  other 
national.  Gwin  and  Broderick  were  not  so  far 
apart  in  ideals.  Broderick  told  Sickles  in  1849, 
when  leaving  New  York  for  that  unknown  land 
whose  strands  were  laved  by  the  waters  of  the 
Pacific,  "I  will  never  return  unless  as  United 
States  senator."  Gwin  also,  when  departing  from 
Washington  for  the  Land  of  Hope  the  same  year, 
said  to  Douglas,  "I  will  be  back  in  a  year  as  sena- 
tor." Both  succeeded,  Gwin  having  won  within 
his  year.  Gwin  but  followed  where  his  people 
led.  He  was  not  a  prophet,  only  a  devotee. 

It  was  as  natural  for  Broderick  to  oppose  slavery 
as  to  breathe.  For  he  breathed  the  air  of  freedom. 
At  this  period  few  foresaw  the  future;  certainly 
not  the  Northern  element.  Neither  did  Broderick ; 
but  his  resolute,  undaunted  character  refused  com- 
pliance and  repelled  seduction.  He  therefore 
allied  himself  at  once  with  Douglas,  the  two  with 
one  other,  Stuart  from  Michigan,  forming  the 
Democratic  trio  of  senators  who  originated  the 
war  upon  slavery.  In  December  he  pronounced 
his  first  discourse  in  the  Senate.  He  opposed  the 
Lecompton  constitution  and  boldly  confronted 
the  President  and  the  Democratic  majority  of 
[172] 


Washington 

the  Senate.  He  severely  criticised  Buchanan 
for  insisting  that  the  sovereign  people  of  Kansas 
should  accept  the  decision  of  a  convention  clearly 
unauthorized  by  any  valid  law,  and  no  less  em- 
phatically condemned  the  convention  itself.  It  is 
interesting  to  peruse  a  fragment  of  this  address : 

"As  I  am  the  only  senator,  I  believe,  on  this 
side  of  the  house  who  feels  disposed  with  the 
senator  from  Illinois  and  the  senator  from  Michi- 
gan to  oppose  the  Lecompton  constitution,  I 
should  like  before  the  adjournment  of  the  Senate 
today  to  be  heard  for  a  very  few  minutes  on  this 
question. 

"It  is  the  first  time  that  a  President  of  the 
United  States  ever  stepped  down  from  the  exalted 
position  he  held  and  attempted  to  coerce  the 
people  into  a  base  submission  to  the  will  of  an 
illegal  body  of  men. 

"I  am  very  sorry  that  I  am  placed  in  the  un- 
fortunate position  of  disagreeing  with  my  party 
on  this  question,  for  I  believe  that  I  rendered  as 
much  service  in  my  way  in  the  election  of  Mr. 
Buchanan  as  any  gentleman  on  this  floor.  He  was 
my  choice  before  the  convention  at  Chicago  met. 
I  considered  him  the  most  available  and  most 
conservative  candidate  that  could  be  presented 
to  the  American  people  for  election  to  the  presi- 
dency, and  for  that  reason  I  supported  him.  I 
regret  very  much  that  I  am  compelled  to  differ 
[1731 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

with  him  on  this  question;  but,  sir,  I  intend  to 
hold  him  responsible  for  it. 

"I  do  not  intend  because  I  am  a  member  of  the 
Democratic  party  to  permit  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  who  has  been  elected  by  that  party, 
to  create  civil  war  in  the  United  States.  The  only 
thing  that  has  astonished  me  in  this  whole  matter 
is  the  forbearance  of  the  people  of  Kansas.  If 
they  had  taken  the  delegates  to  the  Lecompton 
convention  and  flogged  them,  or  cut  their  ears 
off,  and  driven  them  out  of  the  country  I  would 
have  applauded  them  for  the  act.  I  have  spoken 
for  the  purpose  of  placing  myself  right  upon  this 
question. 

"I  feel  embarrassed,  very  much  embarrassed, 
in  doing  so,  because  this  is  the  first  time  I  have 
ever  attempted  to  address  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States." 

From  its  lack  of  symmetry  it  is  very  clear  that 
he  did  not  carefully  prepare  this  speech,  but 
it  evinces  his  forthright  frankness  and  detesta- 
tion, almost  contempt,  for  the  President.  He  did 
not  expect  or  apparently  desire  a  reconciliation. 
Several  weeks  later,  when  the  same  envenomed 
subject  was  again  discussed  in  the  Senate,  he  was 
quite  conspicuous  in  making  motions  and  short 
speeches.  For  a  while  he  seems  to  have  been  in 
complete  charge  of  the  business  on  the  part  of 
the  minority,  especially  including  filibustering 
[174] 


Washington 

tactics,  which  suited  the  present  purpose  of  his 
faction. 

Again  in  March  he  delivered  a  set  address, 
evincing  careful  study  and  reflection.  He  gave 
a  clear,  connected,  Attic  description  of  slavery 
enactments  of  the  congress  from  the  Missouri 
Compromise  in  1820,  citing  copiously  from  the 
utterances  of  eminent  champions  on  either  side, 
up  to  the  measure  then  under  debate.  I  shall 
quote  only  briefly.  Speaking  of  slavery  and  of 
the  intent  of  the  bill  to  give  the  territories  an 
option  on  slavery,  he  said:  "How  foolish  for 
the  South  to  hope  to  contend  with  success  in  such 
an  encounter.  Slavery  is  old,  decrepit  and  con- 
sumptive; freedom  is  young,  strong  and  vigorous. 
The  one  is  naturally  stationary  and  loves  ease; 
the  other  is  migrating  and  enterprising."  It 
would  be  difficult  even  now,  fifty  years  after  the 
event,  to  phrase  the  conditions  more  accurately. 
Continuing,  he  said: 

"They  say  cotton  is  king!  No,  sir,  gold  is  king. 
I  represent  a  state  where  labor  is  honorable;  where 
the  judge  has  left  his  bench,  the  lawyer  and  doctor 
their  offices,  and  the  clergyman  his  pulpit,  for  the 
purpose  of  delving  in  the  earth;  where  no  station 
is  so  high  and  no  position  so  great  that  its  occupant 
is  not  proud  to  boast  that  he  labored  with  his  own 
hands.  There  is  no  state  in  the  Union,  no  place 
on  earth,  where  labor  is  so  honored  and  so  well 
[175] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

rewarded;  no  time  and  no  place  since  the  Almighty 
doomed  the  sons  of  Adam  to  toil,  where  the  curse, 
if  it  be  a  curse,  rests  so  lightly  as  now  on  the  people 
of  California." 

A  Southern  senator  had  stigmatized  Northern 
laborers  as  "mudsills,"  an  expression  that  was  the 
ultimate  cause  of  more  injury  to  their  doctrines 
than  fifty  regiments  of  federal  troops,  for  it  angered 
and  solidified  the  Northern  masses. 

Broderick  quoted  this  previous  observation  and 
continued:  "I  suppose  the  senator  from  South 
Carolina  did  not  intend  to  be  personal  in  his 
remarks  to  any  of  his  peers  upon  the  floor.  If  I 
had  thought  so  I  would  have  noticed  them  at  the 
time.  I  am,  sir,  with  one  exception,  the  youngest 
in  years  of  the  senators  upon  this  floor.  It  is  not 
long  since  I  served  an  apprenticeship  of  five  years 
at  one  of  the  most  laborious  trades  pursued  by  man, 
a  trade  that  from  its  nature  devotes  its  followers 
to  thought,  but  debars  him  from  conversation. 
I  would  not  have  alluded  to  this  if  it  were  not  for 
the  remarks  of  the  senator  from  South  Carolina, 
and  that  thousands  who  know  that  I  am  the  son 
of  an  artisan  and  have  been  a  mechanic  would  feel 
disappointed  in  me  if  I  did  not  reply  to  him. 
I  am  not  proud  of  this.  I  am  sorry  it  is  true.  I 
would  that  I  could  have  enjoyed  the  pleasures  of 
life  in  my  boyhood  days,  but  they  were  denied  to 
me.  I  say  this  with  pain.  I  have  not  the  admira- 
[176] 


Washington 

tion  for  the  men  of  that  class  from  whence  I 
sprang  that  might  be  expected;  they  submit  too 
tamely  to  oppression,  and  are  too  prone  to  neglect 
their  rights  and  duties  as  citizens.  But,  sir,  the 
class  of  society  to  whose  toil  I  was  born,  under  our 
form  of  government,  will  control  the  destinies  of 
this  nation.  If  I  were  inclined  to  forget  my  con- 
nection with  them,  or  to  deny  that  I  sprang  from 
them,  this  chamber  would  not  be  the  place  in  which 
I  could  do  either.  While  I  hold  a  seat  here,  I  have 
but  to  look  at  the  beautiful  capitals  adorning  the 
pilasters  that  support  the  roof  to  be  reminded  of 
my  father's  talent  and  handiwork. 

"I  left  the  scenes  of  my  youth  and  manhood 
for  the  far  West  because  I  was  tired  of  the  struggles 
and  the  jealousies  of  men  of  my  class,  who  could 
not  understand  why  one  of  their  fellows  should 
seek  to  elevate  his  position  above  the  common 
level.  I  made  my  new  abode  among  strangers, 
where  labor  is  honored.  I  had  left  without 
regret.  There  remained  no  tie  of  blood  to  bind 
me  to  any  being  in  existence.  If  I  fell  in  the 
struggle  for  reputation  and  fortune  there  was  no 
relative  on  earth  to  mourn  my  fall. 

"The  people  of  California  elevated  me  to  the 
highest  office  within  their  gift.  My  election  was 
not  the  result  of  an  accident.  For  years  I  had  to 
struggle,  often  seeing  the  goal  of  my  ambition 
within  my  reach ;  it  was  again  and  again  taken  from 
[177] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

me  by  men  of  my  own  class.  I  had  not  only  them 
to  contend  with,  but  almost  the  entire  partisan 
press  of  my  state  was  subsidized  by  government 
money  and  patronage  to  oppose  my  election.  I 
sincerely  hope,  sir,  the  time  will  come  when  such 
speeches  as  that  from  the  senator  from  South 
Carolina  will  be  considered  a  lesson  to  the  laborers 
of  the  nation."  He  concluded  in  these  words: 
"I  hope  in  mercy,  sir,  to  the  boasted  intelligence 
of  this  age,  the  historian,  when  writing  a  history 
of  these  times,  will  ascribe  this  attempt  of  the 
Executive  to  force  this  constitution  upon  an  un- 
willing people  to  the  fading  intellect,  the  petulant 
passion  and  trembling  dotage  of  an  old  man  on  the 
verge  of  the  grave." 

This  speech  made  Broderick  a  marked  man. 
It  was  published  in  full  by  several  potent  Eastern 
journals  and  by  part  of  the  California  press.  The 
allusion  by  the  son,  standing  erect  among  his 
brother  senators  in  the  stately  hall,  to  his  father's 
genius  exhibited  aloft  on  the  carven  entablature, 
created  sympathetic  admiration,  and  the  declara- 
tion that  no  kindred  blood  flowed  in  the  veins  of 
any  living  being  caused  a  sentiment  of  kindly  re- 
spect for  this  lonely  figure  from  the  Pacific  shores. 

The  words  in  which  he  refers  to  Buchanan  so 

contumeliously  were  the  first  public  expression  of 

his  opinions.     Several  writers  have  stated  that 

Broderick  denounced  the  President  a  year  previous, 

[178] 


Washington 

but  that  is  an  error.  He  guarded  silence  in  the 
Senate,  as  custom  ordains,  during  the  first  session 
in  March,  1857,  and  in  fact  remained  only  about 
six  weeks  in  Washington  on  that  occasion.  In 
December,  1857,  he  censured  the  Executive  for 
his  course  in  the  Lecompton  issue,  but  only  now, 
in  March,  1858,  a  year  after  his  accession,  did  he 
announce  their  relations  in  these  bitter  phrases. 
Broderick  had  ample  provocation  long  before,  as 
far  as  patronage  was  in  question,  for  it  is  not  in 
evidence  that  Buchanan  gave  him  a  single  appoint- 
ment nor  is  it  in  evidence  that  he  asked  for  a  single 
one.  Nevertheless,  with  true  dignity,  he  felt  that 
to  embroil  himself  with  party  and  President  for 
a  few  trifling  offices  would  neither  be  judicious 
nor  creditable,  and  when  he  did  make  the  issue  it 
was  on  a  grave  and  national  question  from  which 
he  could  not  recede,  and  wherein  his  decision 
gained  him  the  plaudits  of  the  entire  North. 
Even  toward  Gwin,  who  was  placidly  fattening 
on  the  official  provender  that  he  had  filched,  I 
can  discover  no  expression  of  rancor  or  resent- 
ment. All  through  this  session,  when  Broderick 
alludes  to  his  colleague,  it  is  pleasantly  and  with 
decorum.  Indeed,  most  of  his  allusions  refer  to 
Gwin  as  absent  when  measures  affecting  their 
state  were  under  discussion.  The  latter  was  not 
very  assiduous,  while  Broderick  never  missed  a 
session  nor  a  committee  meeting.  Gwin  rather 
[179] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

carped  at  Broderick' s  oratorical  accomplishments, 
while  the  latter  retorted  that  whenever  the  former 
commenced  to  read  one  of  his  dreary  exhortations, 
the  chamber  was  deserted  by  all  save  the  speaker, 
Broderick  and  one  more  senator.  Broderick  re- 
mained through  courtesy  and  the  other  man 
through  pity.  I  must  again  destroy  the  fallacy 
that  George  Wilkes  wrote  this  speech  or  any  other 
speech  for  Broderick,  or  that  he  was  either  his 
Mentor  or  his  Mephistopheles.  Can  anyone  for 
a  moment  surmise  that  Wilkes  wrote  that  simple 
passage  about  his  father  or  that  solemn  statement 
of  his  loneliness  amid  countless  millions?  The 
lack  of  polish  and  rhetoric  are  manifest  hi  all 
Broderick's  public  utterances,  which  Wilkes  would 
not  have  omitted;  but  the  sincerity,  earnestness 
and  clear,  direct  statement  belong  to  the  man, 
and  the  worldly  Wilkes  could  not  have  evolved 
them.  This  Wilkes  cult  was  formulated  by  a 
writer  not  overly  just  to  Broderick  and  adopted 
by  subsequent  historians  without  sufficient  investi- 
gation. Those  who  read  with  me  do  not  require 
the  conviction  that  if  ever  there  was  a  bold,  self- 
reliant,  venturesome  man,  it  was  Broderick;  one 
of  those  who  do  not  need  or  seek  advice  or 
inspiration.  What  such  men  really  lack  is  not 
one  to  guide  their  footsteps,  but  to  keep  them 
still.  They  want  not  so  much  propulsion  as  a 
brake. 

[180] 


Washington 

Broderick's  assiduity  in  the  discharge  of  his 
senatorial  duties  and  his  directness  and  concise- 
ness in  expressing  his  views  upon  the  floor  would 
have  sufficed  within  a  comparatively  short  time 
to  have  made  him  a  noticeable  figure  in  the  Senate 
even  if  his  general  political  attitude  had  not  been 
so  conspicuous,  for  a  diligent  attention  to  legisla- 
tive duties  and  readiness  and  brevity  in  debate 
always  command  the  attention  of  the  Senate. 
Unfortunately  either  the  circumstance  of  Broder- 
ick's  youth  or  his  present  estrangement  with  his 
party,  or  what  is  probable,  a  combination  of  both, 
tended  to  make  him  exhibit  qualities  less  likely 
to  win  respect  in  a  dignified  legislative  body.  He 
was  not  always  careful  to  observe  the  courtesy 
of  trained  parliamentarians  and  convey  insinua- 
tions wrapped  up  in  parliamentary  language. 
Whatever  he  had  to  state,  he  stated  in  the  most 
positive  and  direct  language.  As  a  result  he 
sometimes  found  himself  at  a  disadvantage  with 
the  skilled  senators  of  long  service.  An  illustra- 
tion of  this  occurred  on  March  13,  1858.  Senator 
Bigler  of  Pennsylvania  had  made  in  a  speech 
some  remarks  which  Broderick  considered  were  a 
reflection  on  the  veracity  of  his  chief,  Senator 
Douglas.  He  therefore  rose  and  said  that  after 
the  extraordinary  turn  given  to  the  debate  by  the 
senator  from  Pennsylvania  he  thought  that  either 
the  senator  from  Illinois  should  be  sent  for  or  the 
[181] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Senate  should  adjourn  until  Monday  when  he 
would  have  a  chance  to  be  present.  The  senators 
opposed  to  Douglas  and  Broderick  chose  to  inter- 
pret this  as  a  call  for  help  and  the  rustle  of  subdued 
laughter  ran  around  the  Senate.  An  experienced 
statesman  pays  no  attention  to  such  things,  but 
Broderick  turned  angrily  and  said  that  he  knew 
some  gentlemen  had  the  habit  of  coughing  and 
speaking  in  an  insulting  manner  when  senators 
arose.  He  thought  such  conduct  unworthy  of  a 
gentleman  and  he  did  not  suppose  that  any  gentle- 
man would  do  it.  One  can  imagine  the  sarcastic 
lifting  of  eyebrows  which  followed  this  outburst 
and  which  gave  to  Senator  Bigler  a  sympathetic 
audience  when  he  arose  to  rebuke  Broderick  for 
saying  that  Senator  Douglas  and  himself  were 
engaged  in  any  controversy.  The  free  state  men 
rallied,  however,  and  by  a  vote  of  20  to  18  the 
Senate  adjourned. 

Douglas  was  still  ill  when  Broderick  addressed 
the  Senate  on  Monday,  and  Broderick  read  an 
article  in  the  New  York  Herald  giving  an  account 
of  the  dispute  between  himself  and  Bigler  on  the 
preceding  Friday.  The  account  ended  with  the 
statement  that  Senator  Bigler  had  rebuked  Bro- 
derick for  his  impertinence,  but  this  Broderick 
denied  with  much  heat.  In  the  first  place  the 
account  in  the  Herald  was  substantially  correct 
and  in  the  second  place  if  it  had  not  been  no 
[182] 


Washington 

senator   gains   anything   by  refuting   newspaper 
inaccuracies  respecting  himself. 

Broderick  also  was  not  very  quick  in  repartee, 
particularly  when  legal  questions  were  involved, 
and  on  several  occasions  hardly  made  a  creditable 
appearance  when  called  upon  suddenly  in  a  running 
debate  to  discuss  questions  in  a  legal  manner. 
All  these  defects,  however,  are  exactly  the  defects 
of  a  young  senator,  particularly  one  with  the 
rough  and  ready  training  of  Broderick.  His  very 
bluffness  and  bold  and  impatient  bearing  attracted 
the  admiration  of  those  who  sympathized  with 
his  views,  and  if  he  had  lived  to  fill  out  his  term 
the  succeeding  sessions  would  undoubtedly  have 
seen  him  grow  in  the  self-restraint  and  parlia- 
mentary skill  so  necessary  to  obtain  prestige  in  a 
great  deliberative  assembly  like  the  United  States 
Senate. 

In  this  work  I  have  endeavored  to  seek  origi- 
nal sources  of  information.  I  have  accepted  no 
statement,  even  if  printed,  without  cognate  and 
competent  authority.  I  am  writing  history,  not 
romance  or  fiction.  I  have  not  read  a  single 
volume  treating  of  these  troublous  times  that 
does  not  display  bias  and  imperfect  knowledge, 
for  the  reason  that  they  were  written  either  by 
participants,  spectators  or  contemporaries.  His- 
tory, be  it  said,  however  strange,  is  best  written 
after  all  the  actors  are  dead. 
[183] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

The  project  of  a  railway  between  the  two  oceans 
was  conceived  at  an  early  epoch,  and  many  bills 
in  relation  thereto  were  presented  to  Congress. 
At  this  session  several  distinct  routes  were  pro- 
posed and  Broderick  energetically  advocated  the 
41st  parallel  as  the  best  and  most  central  location. 
There  were  others  who  advocated  more  northerly 
and  southerly  lines  and  no  decision  was  reached. 

In  one  day,  by  his  promptness  of  action,  he 
secured  the  consideration  and  passage  of  three 
important  measures  affecting  California. 

Because  of  the  increased  cost  of  living  in  early 
California  days,  the  federal  officials  were  allowed 
larger  salaries  than  in  other  states.  Broderick 
contended  that  household  expenses  had  decreased 
to  a  normal  condition  and  therefore  the  govern- 
ment should  lessen  its  payments. 

Inasmuch  as  no  one  of  the  officials  were  his 
appointees  or  friends,  that  was  a  labor  of  love 
as  well  as  economy,  and  he  was  vigilant  in  examin- 
ing appropriation  and  deficiency  bills.  There  was 
no  gainsaying  this  position,  and  he  relentlessly 
decimated  the  perquisites  of  Gwin's  adherents 
without  much  difficulty,  for  the  latter  frequented 
the  Senate  but  seldom. 

The  wits  of  Congress  might  have  said,  follow- 
ing those  of  Rome,  that  the  name  of  one  California 
senator  was  David  and  the  other  Broderick. 

Nevertheless,  at  a  certain  sitting,  Gwin  was 
[184] 


Washington 

decidedly  present,  for  he  presented  to  the  Senate 
resolutions  of  the  California  legislature  instruct- 
ing their  two  senators  to  vote  for  the  Lecompton 
constitution.  The  resolutions  were  read,  and 
Broderick  immediately  said  that  "the  resolutions 
introduced  by  my  colleague  will  have  no  influence 
upon  my  action  here,  now,  or  in  the  future.  I  am 
satisfied  that  four-fifths  of  the  people  of  California 
repudiate  the  Lecompton  fraud. 

"I  shall  respect  the  wishes  of  the  people  and 
pay  no  respect  to  the  resolutions  passed  by  a  legis- 
lature not  representing  the  opinions  of  the  people 
of  California.  I  merely  say  this  now  for  the  pur- 
pose of  placing  myself  on  the  record."  Of  course 
this  was  not  the  legislature  that  elected  Gwin  and 
himself,  but  a  new  body. 

Fremont,  the  first  senator  from  California,  who 
had  been  the  year  before  the  first  nominee  for  the 
presidency  of  the  newly  created  Republican  party, 
had  presented  to  Congress  claims  for  services  while 
engaged  in  the  Mexican  War.  Some  moneys  had 
been  paid  Fremont,  but  for  the  moiety  he  had  been 
vainly  pleading  session  after  session.  It  illus- 
trates the  tendency  of  Broderick's  political  views 
to  learn  that,  with  his  usual  diligence  and  earnest- 
ness, he  advocated  a  settlement  and  payment  to 
this  Republican,  and  finally  succeeded. 


185 


CHAPTER  X 

DISSENSION 

AFTER  the  adjournment  in  June,  1858,  Bro- 
derick  returned  directly  home.  He  found 
that  his  reputation  had  increased  and  so  had  the 
number  of  his  enemies. 

The  rupture  with  the  administration  was  pal- 
pable and  his  anti-slavery  sympathies  were  equally 
clear.  Californians  were  inclined  to  think  him 
premature  and  precipitate.  Even  the  Northerners 
doubted  the  justice  of  his  positive  declarations, 
and  as  for  his  Southern  friends,  their  numbers  had 
diminished. 

The  first  sound  or  sight  of  war  is  on  the  firing 
line,  and  Broderick  in  Congress  saw  farther  than 
the  inhabitants  of  distant  California.  Unable  to 
reward  his  friends,  censured  by  those  whose  judg- 
ment he  valued  and  compelled  to  differ  with  an 
organization  to  which  he  had  been  always  loyal 
and  devoted,  his  position  was  excessively  difficult 
and  disagreeable.  He  could  not  proclaim  what  he 
feared  and  foresaw,  for  no  one  would  credit  him. 
To  one  friend,  and  this  man  a  Republican,  he  con- 
fided his  belief  that  "the  Southerners  would  stop 
at  nothing,  even  to  the  disruption  of  the  Union." 
This  statement  was  expressed  three  years  before 
[186] 


Dissension 

the  war.  Not  many  Northern  men  possessed  the 
same  prescience. 

Broderick  kept  his  soul  in  patience,  attended  to 
his  private  affairs,  which  were  prosperous,  quali- 
fied for  the  bar  and,  after  a  detention  of  only  three 
months,  left  for  Washington.  But,  prior  to  his 
departure,  there  occurred  in  August  of  the  same 
year  one  of  those  events  that  are  never  forgotten, 
but  which,  on  the  contrary,  recall  themselves, 
accompanying  distrust  and  foreboding. 

W.  I.  Ferguson,  from  Pennsylvania  and  Illinois, 
was  a  member  of  the  California  Senate,  represent- 
ing Sacramento.  He  served  in  the  legislature  for 
several  years,  beginning  like  Baker  as  a  member 
of  the  Native  American  party,  and  subsequently 
reverting  again  to  the  Democracy.  He  voted  for 
Broderick  at  his  election  and  was  the  intermediary 
who  arranged  the  midnight  interview  between 
Gwin  and  Broderick  on  the  evening  preceding  the 
former's  selection  by  the  caucus.  To  Ferguson 
had  been  confided  the  custody  of  the  personal 
letter  from  Gwin  to  Broderick  renouncing  all 
claim  to  patronage,  which  was  the  price  of  Gwin's 
elevation.  The  secret  of  this  document's  existence 
and  the  identity  of  its  possessor  must  have  been 
known  to  but  very  few.  It  carried  death  amid 
its  pages. 

During  the  Congressional  session  of  1858,  as  I 
have  already  indicated,  Broderick's  position  with 
[187] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

reference  to  party  and  President  had  been  clearly 
defined.  Ferguson,  a  brilliant  young  attorney 
with  Northern  antecedents  and  predilections, 
came  to  the  aid  of  Broderick  and  Douglas.  In 
an  eloquent  and  effective  harangue  he  declared 
his  faith  in  and  conversion  to  their  doctrines 
and  bitterly  condemned  Buchanan.  The  address 
delivered  in  the  state  Senate  made  Ferguson  a 
marked  man. 

At  San  Francisco,  a  few  months  afterwards, 
he  became  involved  in  a  trivial  political  dispute 
with  a  Southern  gentleman,  who  promptly  chal- 
lenged him.  Ferguson  was  shot  in  the  duel  that 
ensued  and  died  after  suffering  the  torture  of 
having  a  leg  amputated.  It  was  a  warning  to 
Broderick,  Baker  and  other  Northern  men. 
Events  were  hastening.  The  national  differences 
were  leavening  California,  and  the  leaders  of  the 
North  were  being  struck  down.  This  is  what 
Baker  said  in  his  eulogy  on  Ferguson  —  the  same 
immortal  Baker  who,  a  year  later,  delivered  the 
panegyric  over  a  more  illustrious  victim:  "He 
stood  four  fires  at  a  distance  of  scarcely  twenty 
feet  with  a  conviction  that  there  was  a  strong 
determination  to  take  his  life  —  that  the  matter 
should  be  carried  to  extremity  —  and  that,  too, 
when  until  the  day  before,  he  had  never  fired  a 
pistol  in  his  life."  Ferguson's  successful  antago- 
nist was  a  practised  duellist.  The  night  following 
[188] 


Dissension 

Ferguson's  death  his  office  desk  was  found  broken 
open  and  the  contents  scattered. 

Broderick  averred  the  next  year,  when  canvass- 
ing the  state,  that  Ferguson's  desk  was  rifled  with 
the  hope  of  securing  possession  of  the  "  scarlet 
letter/'  and  added  that  Ferguson,  on  his  death- 
bed, intrusted  the  letter  to  General  Estill,  who 
kept  it  in  secrecy  until  restored  to  Broderick. 
This  was  the  second  Northern  statesman  killed 
in  a  duel  with  a  Southerner.  There  was  a  senti- 
ment that  it  was  too  much  like  skill  against  igno- 
rance, practical  training  against  its  absence.  It 
was  fate  that  the  element  of  equality  was  lacking. 
The  civilian  is  no  fair  match  for  the  soldier  when 
the  former  has  not  been  trained  to  the  use  of  arms; 
nor,  although  his  courage  is  high  and  he  may  have 
a  profound  conviction  that  he  is  right,  will  the 
contest  be  therefore  equal  and  just. 

To  inaugurate  and  test  the  first  line  of  coaches 
from  the  Pacific,  Broderick  journeyed  by  land  to 
St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  at  that  time  the  railway's 
western  terminal.  A  boatload  of  faithful  friends 
accompanied  him  to  Benicia,  where  he  took  stage 
for  the  East,  after  a  banquet,  reception,  addresses 
and  salutes.  After  all  he  was  California's  senator 
and  typically  represented  the  state. 

It  shows  how  his  fame  was  enlarging  to  read 
that  the  mayor  and  common  council  of  Salt  Lake 
City  waited  upon  and  tendered  him  its  hospitality. 
[189] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

He  was  assigned  special  apartments  and  visited 
by  many  distinguished  citizens,  including  Brigham 
Young  and  other  Mormon  church  dignitaries.  He 
was  told  that  he  was  the  only  man  from  the  West 
in  whom  they  trusted  and  he  was  implored  to  aid 
and  protect  the  people  and  territory  of  Utah  and 
to  act  as  their  friend  and  representative  in  Con- 
gress. The  journey  to  St.  Joseph  by  stage  coach 
took  forty-seven  days,  including  a  stay  of  a  week 
at  Salt  Lake.  Going  down  a  steep  mountain 
grade  the  vehicle  upset,  fracturing  one  of  Bro- 
derick's  ribs,  and  he  arrived  with  frost-bitten  feet 
and  generally  debilitated.  In  those  early  staging 
days  across  the  plains  people  did  not  know  how 
to  guard  against  the  asperities  of  the  weather  and 
Broderick  nearly  became  a  victim  to  inexperience. 
Still  he  assisted  to  open  this  great  overland  thor- 
oughfare, the  success  of  which  was  of  impor- 
tance to  California's  development,  and,  partially 
recovered,  was  present  in  Washington  at  the 
December  overture  of  Congress. 

When  the  committees  were  announced  he  dis- 
covered that  his  name  had  been  dropped  from  the 
important  Committee  on  Public  Lands,  of  which  he 
had  been  a  member  since  his  accession.  This  was 
done  because  he  was  known  to  strongly  favor  a 
Pacific  railway.  The  Southern  element,  who  con- 
trolled Congress  and  the  President,  was  indisposed 
to  such  a  project,  if  not,  indeed,  positively  hostile. 
[190] 


Dissension 

While  the  Southerners  hoped  in  the  conflict 
which  they  knew  was  inevitable  —  to  retain  Cali- 
fornia as  a  slave  state  —  still  the  railway's  Eastern 
terminals  would  be  among  the  Western  middle 
states,  which  were  free  soil;  hence  they  preferred 
that  there  should  be  no  road.  Moreover,  as 
developed  during  the  discussion,  they  wished  any 
projected  route  to  be  south  of  parallel  36°  30' — 
that  line  being  the  accepted  division  between 
slavery  and  freedom  in  the  extreme  Western  states 
and  territories.  The  Northern  advocates,  how- 
ever, demanded  the  forty-first  parallel  or  neighbor- 
ing degrees.  The  more  southerly  line  would  be 
through  Texas  and  touch  California  at  its  extreme 
southeastern  point.  From  there  San  Francisco 
was  hundreds  of  miles  distant.  If  the  govern- 
ment rendered  assistance  it  was  contemplated  to 
the  state  line  only,  so  this  Southern  railway  would 
have  to  be  extended  north  for  500  miles  to  San 
Francisco  without  federal  subsidies.  All  these  vari- 
ous projected  railways  are  now  completed,  but  it 
was  very  different  fifty  years  past.  For  this  36°  30' 
meant,  if  completed,  a  railway  within  Southern 
lines.  If  not  constructed,  so  much  the  better; 
and  the  more  obstructions  the  less  possibility. 

Broderick  had  studied  existing  conditions  care- 
fully. He  had  made  the  arduous  and  fatiguing 
stage  journey  of  forty  days  to  familiarize  himself 
with  the  country.  Therefore,  to  minimize  his 
[191] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

influence  he  was  deprived  of  a  place  on  this  com- 
mittee, although  California  was  most  vitally  inter- 
ested and  he  himself,  perhaps,  the  best  informed 
man  in  Congress  on  this  absorbing  question  of  a 
railway  from  ocean  to  ocean. 

But  the  statesmen  who  represented  the  South 
did  not  do  things  by  halves.  Gwin  introduced 
a  railway  measure  early  in  the  session,  read  a 
two  hours'  lecture  to  the  Senate  and  then  —  no 
more. 

His  bill  designated  the  line  of  36°  30'.  He 
rarely  attended  the  earnest  and  intelligent  as  well 
as  numerous  debates.  Broderick  complains  more 
than  once  that  his  colleague's  absence  left  him 
without  assistance.  Indeed,  on  the  approach  of 
the  final  vote,  he  directly  asked  Gwin  if  he  was  in 
favor  of  the  measure  that  he  had  himself  pre- 
sented, and  the  latter  did  not  reply.  The  pity 
of  it  was  that  Gwin  sacrificed  his  state  to  his 
Southern  friends  and  affiliations.  Not  that  he 
loved  California  less,  but  he  loved  the  South 
more.  The  measure  finally  passed  the  Senate 
with  no  special  parallel  indicated,  and  perished 
in  the  House. 

The  legislature  elected  in  California  this  year 
was  anti-Broderick.  The  state  and  federal  powers 
were  in  perfect  and  consistent  alignment  against 
him.  Every  state  and  federal  officeholder  was 
his  foe,  and  his  friends  did  not  realize  the  under- 
[192] 


Dissension 

lying  cause.  Only  himself,  alone  at  Washington, 
and  his  enemies  knew  and  forecasted  the  future. 
Broderick's  intellectual  sagacity  surpassed  even 
that  of  Douglas,  with  all  the  latter 's  years  of 
political  knowledge,  for  he  could  not  or  would  not 
observe  the  red  light  on  the  horizon  increase  in 
its  balefulness  of  unhappy  portent. 

This  legislature  condemned  Broderick  by  reso- 
lution for  not  complying  with  the  instructions  of 
its  predecessor  relative  to  the  Lecompton  consti- 
tution and  stigmatized  his  words  applied  in  the 
Senate  to  the  President  as  a  disgrace  and  humilia- 
tion to  the  nation  and  people.  I  have  related 
elsewhere  both  the  resolutions  of  the  preceding 
California  body  and  Broderick's  objurgation  of 
Buchanan,  to  which  the  last  resolutions  applied. 

I  have  been  unable  to  discover  that  these  later 
declarations  of  the  legislature  were  presented  to 
the  Senate,  as  were  the  first.  Other  Northern 
senators  in  those  days  were  reprimanded  by  their 
timid  and  thoughtless  constituents,  who  dreamt 
the  difficulties  could  be  settled  with  words.  There 
were  Cass,  Pugh,  Bright,  and  even  Sumner.  It  is 
true  that  hi  every  instance  reparation  was  ulti- 
mately made. 

The  California  legislature  of  1861  expunged  all 

these  violent  diatribes  against  Broderick  and  his 

memory  with  becoming  dignity  and  indignation, 

but   that  was   two   years   after   he  had   fallen. 

[193] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

Meanwhile  the  bitterness  of  it  rankled  in  his  lofty 
spirit,  and  he  must  have  doubted  if,  after  all, 
he  might  be  wrong.  He  had  one  rasping  rencoun- 
ter with  Gwin,  taunting  him  with  his  free-soil 
doctrines  in  the  California  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion of  1849,  and  quoting  from  Gwin's  own  address 
advocating  freedom  and  not  slavery.  But  1859 
was  ten  years  later.  Men  change,  and  perhaps 
with  reason,  in  a  much  shorter  period.  Broderick 
also  attacked  several  schemes  which  contemplated 
the  expenditure  of  federal  funds  in  California  as 
improper  and  extravagant.  Gwin  was  then-  author 
and  defender.  One  has  only  to  glance  over  the 
Senate  proceedings  clearly  to  observe  the  tempered 
rancor  and  augmenting  irritation  between  the  two 
senators. 

Gwin  was  not  absent  at  this  session  as  at  the 
last.  The  country  was  fast  drifting  on  the  rocks, 
and  he  was  one  of  the  pilots  directing  its  dangerous 
course  to  destruction;  alert,  active,  adroit.  Bro- 
derick was  beset  on  every  side.  There  was  noth- 
ing he  wanted  that  he  could  have.  Everything 
he  opposed  succeeded.  In  one  debate  six  of  the 
enemy  confronted  him,  each  one  of  the  six  being 
a  Southern  senator.  He  stood  alone  with  his 
back  to  the  wall.  Seward  styled  him  openly  "the 
brave  young  senator, "  but  the  Republicans  were 
few  and  they  did  not  comprehend  the  broadness 
of  his  intellect  and  the  priceless  value  of  his  ser- 
[194] 


Dissension 

vices.     They  regarded  him  with  pity  mingled  with 
respect;  but  he  was  a  Democrat. 

Douglas  had  been  sorely  wounded  in  his  forum 
contest  with  Lincoln.  His  lifelong  dream  of  the 
Presidency  he  saw  was  only  a  dream,  and  his 
lifelong  friends  were  wandering  from  his  side  into 
the  filmy  fog  of  the  future.  He  could  only  pray 
for  Broderick,  but  could  not,  dared  not  battle 
by  his  side.  Besides,  Broderick  went  far.  His 
steel-blue  eyes,  looking  upwards  at  his  father 's 
monument,  saw  blood  clouds  encompassing  the 
capital  and  the  country.  He  had  the  clearest 
vision  and  intellect  of  any  man  in  the  Senate,  and 
yet  he  was  treated  like  a  pariah,  an  outcast, 
taunted  and  baited  until  he  began  to  doubt. 
Even  his  firm,  rugged  character  quailed  for  a 
moment,  and  in  his  lonely  environment  he  cried 
out:  "If  I  have  made  a  mistake  here  this  evening 
I  will  try  to  correct  it  when  I  come  here  next 
winter  if  I  should  live  so  long  and  not  resign  in 
the  meantime."  Did  these  ominous,  fateful  ex- 
pressions presage  his  doom?  Did  the  memory  of 
Ferguson  cloud  his  mental  vision?  Did  he  know 
how  his  blood  would  be  sought?  Men  do  not 
talk  of  dying  at  thirty-nine  without  reasons.  Yet 
there  were  gallant  foes  among  those  Southrons. 
Toombs  and  Benjamin  were  both  chivalrous 
cavaliers,  who  would  have  rivalled  the  French 
at  Fontenoy.  While  they  assailed  him  often  on 
[195] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

national  issues,  on  minor  affairs  affecting  his  own 
state  they  aided  him.  They  seemed  to  take  a 
grim  delight  in  thwarting  Gwin.  It  does  not  lie 
with  me  to  censure  the  Southerners.  The  South 
was  their  country  as  the  North  was  ours.  They 
felt  as  Decatur  said  in  his  toast:  "Our  country, 
may  she  be  always  right;  but  our  country,  right 
or  wrong." 

Lee  followed  not  the  Confederacy,  but  his  state. 
That  was  his  country.  It  is  true  the  cause  was 
indefensible.  Slaves  could  not  exist  in  civilized 
communities.  Even  hi  semi-barbarous  South 
America  they  had  been  manumitted.  The  propo- 
nents of  slavery  were  warring  against  the  inevi- 
table, against  the  moving  glacier  of  modern 
progress.  But  many  a  man  fought  in  Southern 
ranks  not  for  slavery,  but  for  his  state.  It  is  all 
over  now  and  the  Union  is  stronger  after  the 
struggle,  though  those  who  glance  over  these  pages 
may  be  appalled  at  the  venom  and  ferocity  with 
which  some  were  pursued. 

As  a  senator  Broderick  not  only  advocated  the 
enfranchisement  of  labor,  but  stood  for  the  home- 
stead law;  for  the  endowment  of  mechanical  and 
agricultural  colleges  by  Congress;  for  the  construc- 
tion of  a  railway  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean;  for  the  prosecution  of  peculators  in 
all  departments  of  the  government  and  for  general 
reform  and  retrenchment  in  public  affairs.  Among 
[196] 


Dissension 

the  special  objects  of  his  animadversions  were 
corrupt  Indian  agents,  venal  surveyors  of  public 
lands,  jobbery  by  postmasters  and  the  rascally 
revenue  collectors  of  the  administration,  sparing 
not  even  Buchanan  himself. 

He  left  Washington,  his  birthplace,  forever,  on 
the  adjournment  of  Congress  in  March,  1859. 
While  conversing  with  friends  at  a  hotel  in  New 
York  he  was  wantonly  insulted  by  two  men,  — 
unknown  to  him.  On  a  repetition  of  the  offence, 
Broderick,  strong  and  active,  struck  them  both 
severely  with  his  cane.  Subsequently  it  was 
learned  that  they  were  from  New  Orleans  and  of 
a  certain  standing. 

The  affair  annoyed  him,  as  it  seemed  premedi- 
tated, and  he  suspected  a  plot  to  force  a  duel. 
Was  it  not  a  forerunner  of  the  future?  In  bidding 
farewell  to  a  friend  in  New  York,  he  said:  "I  don't 
know  whether  you  will  ever  see  me  again." 

In  this  gloomy  mood  he  returned  home,  via 
Panama,  to  find  political  chaos  reigning  in  Cali- 
fornia. There  was  no  question  of  his  position. 
He  was  clearly  opposed  to  all  the  dominant  ele- 
ments, both  in  Washington  and  at  home.  He  was 
hardly  a  Democrat;  he  was  not  yet  a  Republican, 
and  there  was  no  half-way  house.  He  was  in  that 
anomalous  position  of  men  who  doubt  the  old, 
but  still  are  not  quite  ready  for  the  vigorous  em- 
brace of  the  exuberant  young.  He  could  not, 
[197] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

would  not,  deny  his  antagonism  to  Buchanan  and 
Southern  dogmas,  and  yet  dared  he  desert  the 
Democratic  party?  Where  would  he  go?  The 
Republican  organization  was  his  natural  home, 
for  in  that  which  caused  its  birth  and  growth  — 
opposition  to  slavery  —  he  was  one  of  the  most 
early  and  ardent  advocates.  In  effect  each  Cali- 
fornia state  and  California  government  official 
was  Southern  by  birth  or  sentiment.  It  was  said 
that  of  an  hundred  and  fifty  federal  officeholders 
stationed  in  San  Francisco,  all  but  five  sprang 
from  south  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  —  which, 
of  course,  was  both  unjust  and  imprudent,  for  it 
carried  reflection  and  irritation  to  Northern  men. 
By  now,  indeed,  the  cleavage  was  pronounced 
and  the  two  factions  were  ranging  in  ranks. 
Only  the  Democrats  could  not  yet  forget  the  fetich 
of  the  name  under  which  as  talisman  they  had 
ruled  the  land  these  many  years.  Hence  Northern 
Democrats  were  dissatisfied  and  discontented,  yet 
knew  not  where  to  go  nor  why. 

Nevertheless,  the  rupture  was  complete.  On 
the  question  of  the  Lecompton  constitution  the 
Democrats  divided,  formed  two  state  conventions 
and  nominated  two  complete  state  tickets.  The 
federal  and  state  governments  combined  in  favor 
of  the  Lecompton  constitution  and  were  un- 
doubtedly the  regular  Democratic  organization, 
and  as  such  carried  the  votes  of  those  whom  I  have 
[198] 


Dissension 

indicated,  as  well  as  of  the  timid,  who  deprecated 
change  and  confusion.  They  were  not  seers  nor 
Cassandras  and  could  not  penetrate  the  future. 
On  his  side  Broderick  selected  as  candidate  for 
governor  a  Republican. 

He  was  too  sagacious  not  to  know  that  he  could 
not  win  without  their  aid  and  probably  not  even 
then,  for  he,  better  than  any  man  in  the  state, 
fathomed  the  depth,  solidity  and  discipline  of  the 
battle  line  which  he  confronted.  Doubtless  he 
hoped  for  fusion,  and  Horace  Greeley,  one  of  the 
earliest  and  foremost  Republicans,  then  on  a  visit 
to  the  coast,  openly  advised  the  California  Repub- 
licans to  coalesce  with  Broderick  and  his  Demo- 
cratic adherents. 

But  the  California  Republicans  declined,  per- 
haps feeling  with  Pompey  that  more  people  wor- 
shipped the  rising  than  the  setting  sun.  Still  the 
sentiment  between  the  new  birth  and  the  anti- 
Lecomptonites  was  cordial.  Baker,  the  Republi- 
can nominee  for  Congress,  and  Broderick  became 
close  and  intimate  associates.  They  were  of  the 
same  stamp  and  type,  men  who  led  multitudes  and 
founded  states. 

For  the  first  time  Broderick  canvassed  the  state, 
addressing  the  people.  Very  likely  his  sojourn  in 
the  Senate  and  contact  with  ready  and  fluent 
orators  had  furnished  him  with  courage  and  a 
certain  aptitude.  He  spoke  frequently  in  a  clear, 
[199] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

sonorous  voice,  distinctly  heard.  His  enunciation 
was  deliberate  and  his  elocution  good.  He  seldom 
gesticulated  and  never  played  cadence  with  his 
sentences  —  the  orator's  charm.  Not  a  jest,  not 
a  smile,  but  intensely  resolved;  grand,  gloomy 
and  peculiar,  as  Phillips  said  of  Napoleon.  He 
accused  Gwin  of  several  public  transactions  as 
senator,  which  were  prompted  by  venal  motives; 
he  delved  into  details  on  these  matters;  chal- 
lenged Gwin  to  a  public  debate  before  the 
populace,  and  summed  up  his  sins  and  crimes 
with  the  phrase  "  dripping  with  corruption." 

Gwin,  who  was  also  active  in  the  campaign,  re- 
plied with  vigor  and  acerbity,  and  the  conflict  be- 
came bitterly  personal  and  acrimonious.  Latham, 
who  had  been  a  candidate  for  senator  when  Bro- 
derick and  Gwin  were  elected  and  who  was  now 
the  Lecompton  nominee  for  governor,  made  a 
second  antagonist  of  Broderick.  He  was  of  the 
North  with  Southern  prejudices  and  predilections, 
and  supported  Gwin,  for  therein  lay  advancement, 
but  he  was  neither  loved  by  the  one  nor  hated  by 
the  other  to  an  acute  degree. 

The  senatorial  election  of  1857  was  one  of  the 
principal  topics  of  discussion  in  the  campaign, 
and  Latham  was  involved  only  to  a  less  degree 
than  Gwin.  The  difference  was  that  Gwin  gave 
Broderick  a  written  letter  of  renunciation  and 
abdication  of  the  government  patronage,  and 
[200] 


Dissension 

Latham  did  not,  though  he  had  been  quite  willing. 
Broderick  had  carefully  refrained  from  informing 
the  people  of  this  extremely  humble  and  abject 
paper.  He  was  not  of  a  forgiving  or  magnanimous 
nature,  but  his  party  creed  and  faith  had  been 
deep  and  constant,  and  he  knew  the  revelation 
would  never  be  forgotten. 

Now,  however,  he  himself  had  left  Democracy 
and  was  drifting  on  the  political  waters,  farther 
and  farther  from  the  old  shores  and  nearer  and 
nearer  to  the  new,  from  whence  shone  the  light  of 
Republicanism  that  was  to  save  the  republic. 

Besides,  he  felt  that  Gwin  deserved  no  sympathy 
for  his  turpitude  in  continuing  to  advise  Buchanan 
as  if  no  such  damning  document  existed.  So  in 
August,  at  a  meeting  under  the  pines  and  the  stars 
at  Shasta,  he  said: 

"I  now  return  to  Gwin,  and  I  shall  be  brief. 
I  will  give  you  the  copy  of  the  letter  that  I  believe 
led  to  the  death  of  W.  L.  Ferguson.  Do  you 
believe  it  was  for  nothing  that  Ferguson's  desk 
in  the  senate  chamber  was  broken  open  immedi- 
ately after  his  decease?  On  his  deathbed  Ferguson 
told  General  Estill  where  he  could  find  the  letter. 
A  curse  has  followed  that  letter,  and  I  now  give 
it  to  the  public  that  the  curse  may  return  to  its 
author  —  that  its  disgrace  and  shame  may  burn 
the  brand  upon  his  forehead  even  as  plainly,  as 
palpably  as  the  scarlet  letter  burned  upon  the 
[201] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

breast  of  Hester  Pryn!  Let  Dr.  Gwin  or  any  of 
his  set  deny  its  authority  and  I  will  prove  that  he 
wrote  it,  letter  for  letter,  column  for  column." 

He  then  read  the  instrument  which  appears  on 
an  earlier  page  of  this  volume. 

Gwin,  in  his  reply  a  few  days  later  at  Yreka, 
said  that  Broderick  was  "  a  cowardly  liar.  He  will 
slander  and  lie  upon  me  —  it  is  his  vocation  and 
has  been  that  of  his  minions  for  years,  but  I  will 
survive  it  now  as  I  have  heretofore.  The  more  he 
abuses  me  the  more  firmly  I  will  hold  the  confi- 
dence of  my  constituents.  This  is  strong  language, 
but  I  intend  it  to  be  so.  Broderick  is  to  be  here 
in  a  short  time  and  I  wish  him  to  understand  it." 
These  words,  with  their  direct  implication  and 
application,  conveyed  a  clear  significance  that  was 
universally  understood  and  accepted.  In  the 
same  address  he  refers  almost  humorously  to  the 
penalties  of  patronage  in  language  that  I  heard 
re-echoed  by  another  senator  forty  years  after- 
wards. Gwin  said: 

"The  first  five  years  of  my  term  I  had  no  trouble 
on  the  subject  of  executive  patronage,  as  it  was 
a  Whig  reign.  I  made  no  complaint.  But  when 
Pierce  came  in  and  new  officers  had  to  be  ap- 
pointed all  the  officeseekers  flocked  to  Washington. 
I  among  others  was  beset  by  them.  You  can 
form  no  idea  of  the  manner  in  which  they  urged 
their  claims.  There  was  about  five  for  every 
[202] 


Dissension 

office.  They  interrupted  me  in  the  senate  cham- 
ber, and  I  was  not  safe  in  my  own  home  from  their 
pursuit.  I  never  got  up  to  eat  my  breakfast  but 
my  eyes  were  greeted  with  the  sight  of  them. 
The  result  was  that  I  came  to  the  determination 
never  to  have  anything  to  do  with  the  dispensing 
of  office  if  I  remained  in  the  Senate. 

"For  Collector  of  the  Port  of  San  Francisco, 
under  Pierce,  there  were  two  prominent  candidates 
—  Marshall  and  another.  The  President  informed 
me  that  if  I  would  commend  Marshall  he  would 
appoint  him,  otherwise,  from  personal  feelings,  he 
would  give  the  appointment  to  the  other,  Latham. 
I  declined  signing  MarshalPs  paper.  He  came 
home  the  worst  enemy  I  had. 

"With  all  the  talent  he  is  known  to  possess, 
by  articles  signed  'Interior/  attacking  me,  etc., 
he  proved  the  bitterest  foe  I  ever  had.  The 
gentleman  appointed  to  the  office  is  at  present 
one  of  my  enemies." 


203] 


CHAPTER  XI 

PROVOCATION 

T^VAVID  S.  TERRY  came  to  California  from 
*^*  Texas  in  1849  and  located  in  Stockton.  He 
had  volunteered  both  in  the  army  of  the  Republic 
of  Texas  and  in  the  United  States  service  from 
Texas  during  the  Mexican  War  in  1846  and  had 
served  throughout  as  one  of  a  company  of  mounted 
rangers.  Then*  principal  function  was  to  repel 
Mexican  and  Indian  incursions  from  the  borders, 
where  helpless  families  and  small  hamlets  lay 
unprotected. 

As  a  mounted  soldier  he  had  acquitted  himself 
creditably  and  with  courage.  The  war  ended  in 
1848,  and  young  Terry  became  a  lawyer.  The 
next  year  he  followed  the  hegira  to  the  West 
and  crossed  the  continent  to  California.  A  year 
or  two  later  he  returned  to  Texas,  married,  and 
brought  his  bride  to  Stockton,  which  became  their 
permanent  residence.  He  was  always  an  active 
Democrat  in  state  politics,  conventions  and  in  the 
local  politics  of  his  county. 

He  was  a  strong  opponent  of  Broderick  in  the 
convention  of  1854,  which  assembled  in  the  Sacra- 
mento church  and  nearly  ended  its  deliberations 
in  a  sanguinary  battle.  Subsequently  he  deserted 
[204] 


Provocation 

the  Democratic  organization  and  espoused  the 
Native  American  party.  During  the  meteoric 
and  ephemeral  career  of  that  party  he  was  elected 
in  1855  as  an  associate  justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  California  and  took  office  the  first  of  the 
ensuing  year.  Some  time  thereafter  Chief  Justice 
Murray  died  and  Terry  was  appointed  by  the 
governor  his  successor. 

In  the  summer  of  1856,  only  a  few  months  after 
his  elevation  and  before  the  death  of  Murray,  he 
stabbed  one  of  the  Vigilante  officers  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, for  which  he  was  tried  and  released  by  the 
committee  after  an  imprisonment  of  several  weeks. 
A  year  later  Stephen  J.  Field  was  chosen  to  fill 
the  vacancy  on  the  supreme  bench  caused  by  the 
elevation  of  Terry  to  the  chief  justiceship.  His 
tenure  of  office  terminated  in  three  years;  that  is, 
at  the  end  of  1859. 

Elected  as  a  Know-Nothing,  Terry,  like  many 
others,  had  abandoned  this  organization  and 
became  once  again  a  Democrat.  Always  an 
extreme  partisan,  the  bitter  feud  raging  between 
the  two  wings  of  the  party  had  found  in  the  Texan 
an  ardent  response,  and  his  Southern  slavery 
antecedents  and  proclivities  naturally  ranked  him 
with  that  element. 

After  his  dangerous  experiment  with  the  Vigi- 
lantes in  1856  he  remembered  and  conserved 
the  dignity  demanded  of  his  station  and  ex- 
[205] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

ercised  his  judicial  functions  with  justice  and 
honor. 

Three  years  later  he  was  a  candidate  before  the 
Lecompton  convention  to  succeed  himself.  But 
the  delegates  chose  another  contestant.  The 
same  evening,  at  Sacramento,  after  his  defeat,  he 
came  before  the  convention  and  delivered  a  vehe- 
ment address.  The  subjoined  is  a  part  of  his 
speech: 

"What  other?  A  miserable  remnant  of  a  fac- 
tion sailing  under  false  colors  trying  to  obtain 
votes  under  false  pretences.  They  have  no 
distinction  they  are  entitled  to.  They  are  the 
followers  of  one  man,  the  personal  chattels  of  a 
single  individual,  whom  they  are  ashamed  of; 
they  belong  heart  and  soul,  body  and  breeches, 
to  David  C.  Broderick. 

"They  are  yet  ashamed  to  acknowledge  their 
master,  and  are  calling  themselves,  forsooth, 
Douglas  Democrats,  when  it  is  known  to  them, 
as  to  us,  that  the  gallant  senator  from  Illinois, 
whose  voice  has  always  been  heard  in  the  advocacy 
of  Democratic  principles,  has  no  affiliation  with 
them,  no  feeling  in  common  with  them. 

"Perhaps,  Mr.  President  and  gentlemen,  I 
am  mistaken  in  denying  their  rights  to  claim 
Douglas  as  their  leader;  but  it  is  the  banner 
of  the  Black  Douglas,  whose  name  is  Frederick, 
not  Stephen." 

[206] 


Provocation 

These  were  the  words  of  the  chief  justice  of  the 
state,  delivered  after  three  years  of  silence,  to  a 
body  of  delegates  who  had  just  defeated  his 
aspirations,  so  that  no  epithets,  however  violent, 
could  have  altered  their  declared  resolve. 

Even  today,  when  we  are  very  tolerant  and 
philosophical  toward  political  animadversions, 
such  a  diatribe  would  be  indignantly  resented; 
still  more  so  in  the  years  of  which  I  write.  Every 
man  of  distinction  was  careful  of  his  language, 
public  and  private;  people  would  fight  for  a  pin, 
and  their  " honor"  was,  of  course,  a  more  valuable 
commodity. 

Terry,  in  his  letter  to  the  Vigilantes,  said: 
"One  of  the  first  lessons  I  learned  was  to  avoid 
giving  an  insult,  and  to  allow  none  to  be  given  to 
me.  I  have  acted  and  expect  to  act  on  this  prin- 
ciple. I  believe  no  man  has  a  right  to  outrage 
the  feelings  of  another,  or  attempt  to  blast  his 
good  name  without  being  responsible  for  his 
actions." 

If  Terry  thought  others  felt  like  himself  he  must 
have  expected  recognition.  On  the  morning  of 
the  27th  of  June  Broderick,  while  at  the  breakfast 
table  of  the  International  Hotel  in  San  Francisco, 
read  in  a  newspaper  the  address  of  Terry,  delivered 
in  Sacramento  two  days  previously.  He  became 
angry  and  spoke  to  a  friend  at  the  table,  the  com- 
pany including  several  ladies.  He  observed  that 
[207] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

while  Terry  was  incarcerated  by  the  Vigilance 
Committee  he  had  paid  $200  a  week  to  support 
a  newspaper  to  defend  him,  and  added:  "I  have 
said  that  I  considered  him  the  only  honest  man 
on  the  supreme  bench,  but  I  now  take  it  all  back." 
Mr.  D.  W.  Perley,  a  former  law  partner  of  Terry's, 
by  a  coincidence,  was  breakfasting  in  the  room 
and  heard  Broderick.  Years  previously  Terry 
had  seconded  Perley  in  a  duel,  and  Perley,  in  the 
trial  of  Terry  before  the  Vigilance  Committee,  had 
given  strong  and  insistent  evidence  in  favor  of 
Terry's  personal  character  and  integrity.  Hence 
he  was  an  old  and  intimate  friend,  though  his 
personal  and  professional  standing  had  somewhat 
lessened  since  Terry  was  no  longer  his  associate. 
He  asked  Broderick  if  he  meant  Terry,  and  being 
answered  "yes,"  at  once  resented  the  words  used 
by  Broderick,  who  cut  him  short  with  some  curt 
remarks  that  Perley  deemed  personally  offensive. 
He  sent  a  challenge  to  Broderick,  which  the  latter 
declined,  giving  his  reasons  in  a  somewhat  lengthy 
epistle,  from  which  I  quote: 

"For  many  years  and  up  to  the  time  of  my  ele- 
vation to  the  position  I  now  occupy  it  was  well 
known  that  I  would  not  have  avoided  any  issue 
of  the  character  proposed.  If  compelled  to  accept 
a  challenge  it  could  only  be  with  a  gentleman  hold- 
ing a  position  equally  elevated  and  responsible; 
and  there  are  no  circumstances  which  could  induce 
[208] 


Provocation 

me  even  to  do  this  during  the  pending  of  the  pres- 
ent canvass.  When  I  authorized  the  announce- 
ment that  I  would  address  the  people  of  California 
during  the  campaign  it  was  suggested  that  efforts 
would  be  made  to  force  me  into  difficulties,  and 
I  determined  to  take  no  notice  of  attacks  from  any 
source  during  the  canvass.  There  are  probably 
many  other  gentlemen  who  would  seek  similar 
opportunities  for  hostile  meetings  for  the  purpose 
of  accomplishing  a  political  object  or  to  obtain 
public  notoriety. 

"I  cannot  afford  at  the  present  time  to  descend 
to  a  violation  of  the  constitution  and  the  state 
laws  to  subserve  either  their  or  your  purposes." 

A  few  days  later  one  of  the  city  press,  ad- 
verting to  the  subject,  remarked:  "For  refus- 
ing to  fight  a  duel  under  the  circumstances, 
the  large  mass  of  the  people  will  honor  D.  C. 
Broderick.  The  belief  is  quite  general  that 
there  are  certain  political  opponents  of  his  who 
long  for  a  chance  to  shoot  him,  either  in  a 
fair  or  unfair  fight,  and  that  efforts  would  be 
made  sooner  or  later  to  involve  him  in  a  per- 
sonal difficulty.  It  is  wisdom  on  his  part  to 
avoid  the  traps  set  for  him  and  thus  defeat  all 
the  plans  of  those  in  whose  path  he  happens  to 
just  now  stand.  His  seat  in  the  Senate  would 
be  quite  acceptable  to  a  number  of  gentlemen 
in  the  state.  The  people  of  California  ought  to 
[209] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

manifest,  in  a  manner  not  to  be  mistaken,  their 
approval  of  the  conduct  of  a  public  man  who 
exhibits  courage  to  refuse  upon  any  ground  to 
accept  a  challenge." 

All  this  in  a  most  matter-of-fact  way,  as  if  hunt- 
ing the  life  of  a  senator  of  the  United  States  was 
not  an  unusual  and  customary  proceeding!  And 
Broderick  also  refers  to  this  assumption  in  his 
letter  above.  It  seems  to  have  been  in  the  air, 
on  every  one's  lips,  hi  every  gathering,  that  this 
man  was  to  be  followed  and  shot  like  a  wild 
beast! 

Over  two  months  afterwards,  on  Wednesday, 
the  7th  of  September,  occurred  the  election,  and 
during  this  period  Terry  said  never  a  word.  His 
only  public  address  in  three  years  was  the  one 
from  which  I  have  given  the  excerpt  attacking 
Broderick.  Broderick  emerged  from  the  contest 
dispirited,  defeated,  in  ill  health,  which  had  clung 
to  him  for  months,  and  should  have  gone  to  a 
sanitarium.  He  had  just  ended  the  most  severe 
and  trying  canvass  within  the  memory  of  Cali- 
f ornians,  concentrating  in  his  own  person  the  abuse, 
calumny  and  vituperation  of  his  triumphant  ad- 
versaries. Mark  now  how  events  followed  each 
other.  The  election  was  on  the  7th  of  September. 
That  very  day  Terry  forwarded  to  the  governor 
his  written  resignation  as  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  state  of  California.  His 
[210] 


Provocation 

duration  of  the  office  expired  with  the  year.  He 
left  Sacramento  immediately,  journeyed  direct 
to  Oakland  and  at  once  sent  to  Broderick  the 
sub j  oined  communication : 

"OAKLAND,  SEPTEMBER  8,  1859. 
"Hox.  D.  C.  BRODERICK. 

"  SIR,  —  Some  two  months  since,  at  the  public 
table  in  the  International  Hotel  in  San  Francisco, 
you  saw  fit  to  indulge  in  certain  remarks  concern- 
ing me,  which  were  offensive  in  then-  nature. 
Before  I  had  heard  of  the  circumstance  your  note 
of  29th  of  June,  addressed  to  Mr.  D.  W.  Perley, 
in  which  you  declared  that  you  would  not  re- 
spond to  any  call  of  a  personal  character  during 
the  political  canvass  just  concluded,  had  been 
published. 

"I  have,  therefore,  not  been  permitted  to  take 
any  notice  of  these  remarks  until  the  expiration 
of  the  limit  fixed  by  yourself.  I  now  take  the 
earliest  opportunity  to  require  of  you  a  retraction 
of  those  remarks.  This  note  will  be  handed  you 
by  my  friend,  Calhoun  Benham,  Esq.,  who  is 
acquainted  with  its  contents  and  will  receive  your 

reP^  "D.  S.  TERRY/' 

Benham  sought  out  Broderick,  gave  him  the 
letter    and    requested    an    immediate    response. 
Broderick  said  he  would  answer  the  day  following, 
[2111 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

but  Benham  asked  for  a  reply  directly  and  it  was 
so  agreed. 
The  reply  follows: 

"SAN  FRANCISCO,  SEPTEMBER  8,  1859. 
"HON.  D.  S.  TERRY. 

"SiR, — Your  note  of  September  8th  reached  me 
through  the  hands  of  Mr.  Calhoun  Benham.  The 
remarks  used  by  me  in  the  conversation  referred  to 
may  be  a  subject  of  future  misrepresentation;  and 
for  obvious  reasons  I  have  to  desire  you  to  state 
what  were  the  remarks  that  you  designate  in  your 
note  as  offensive,  and  of  which  you  require  of  me 
a  retraction.  «j  remam^  etc., 

"D.  C.  BRODERICK." 

This  is  Terry's  answer: 

"SAN  FRANCISCO,  SEPTEMBER  9th,  1859. 
"HoN.  D.  C.  BRODERICK. 

"  SIR,  — In  reply  to  your  note  of  this  date  I  have 
to  say  that  the  offensive  remarks  to  which  I 
alluded  in  my  communication  of  yesterday  are  as 
follows:  'I  have  hitherto  considered  and  spoken 
of  him  (myself)  as  the  only  honest  man  on  the 
Supreme  Court  bench;  but  I  now  take  it  all  back/ 
thus  by  implication  reflecting  on  my  personal  and 
official  integrity.  This  is  the  substance  of  your 
remarks  as  reported  to  me;  the  precise  terms, 
[212] 


Provocation 

however,  in  which  such  an  implication  was  con- 
veyed are  not  important  to  the  question. 

"You  yourself  can  best  remember  the  terms  in 
which  you  spoke  of  me  on  the  occasion  referred 
to.  What  I  require  is  the  retraction  of  any  words 
which  were  calculated  to  reflect  on  my  character 
as  an  official  or  a  gentleman. 

"I  remain,  your  obedient  servant, 

"D.S.TERRY." 


"FRIDAY  EVENING,  SEPTEMBER  9th. 
"HoN.  D.  S.  TERRY. 

"Yours  of  this  date  has  been  received.  The 
remarks  made  by  me  were  occasioned  by  certain 
offensive  allusions  of  yours  concerning  me  made 
in  the  convention  at  Sacramento,  reported  in  the 
Union  of  June  25th.  Upon  the  topic  alluded  to 
in  your  note  of  this  date  my  language,  so  far  as 
my  recollection  serves  me,  was  as  follows:  ' Dur- 
ing Judge  Terry's  incarceration  by  the  Vigilance 
Committee  I  paid  $200  a  week  to  support  a  news- 
paper in  his  (your)  defence.  I  have  also  stated 
heretofore  that  I  considered  him  (Judge  Terry) 
the  only  honest  man  on  the  supreme  bench,  but 
I  take  it  all  back/  You  are  the  best  judge  as  to 
whether  this  language  affords  good  ground  for 
offence.  "I  remain,  etc., 

"D.  C.  BRODERICK." 
[213] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

"SAN  FRANCISCO,  SEPTEMBER  9th,  1859. 
"HoN.  D.  C.  BRODERICK. 

"  SIR,  —  Some  months  ago  you  used  language 
concerning  me  offensive  in  its  nature.  I  waited 
the  lapse  of  a  period  of  time  fixed  by  yourself 
before  I  asked  reparation  therefor  at  your  hands. 
You  replied,  asking  specifications  of  the  language 
used  which  I  regarded  as  offensive.  In  another 
letter  I  gave  you  the  specification  and  reiterated 
my  demand  for  a  retraction.  To  this  last  letter 
you  reply,  acknowledging  the  use  of  the  offensive 
language  imputed  to  you  and  not  making  the 
retraction  required.  This  course  on  your  part 
leaves  me  no  other  alternative  but  to  demand 
the  satisfaction  usual  among  gentlemen,  which 
I  accordingly  do.  Mr.  Benham  will  make  the 
necessary  arrangements. 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"D.  S.  TERRY." 

"SAN  FRANCISCO,  SEPTEMBER  10th,  1859. 
"HoN.  D.  S.  TERRY. 

"SiR,  —  Your  note  of  the  above  date  has  been 
received  at  1  o'clock  A.M.,  September  10th. 

"In  response  to  the  same  I  will  refer  you  to  my 
friend,  Hon.  J.  C.  McKibben,  who  will  make  the 
necessary  arrangements  demanded  in  your  letter. 

"I  remain,  etc., 

"D.  C.  BRODERICK." 
[214] 


Provocation 

The  super-serviceable  friends  of  Broderick,  in 
obedience  to  Benham's  behest,  repaired  to  Has- 
kelPs  house  at  Black  Point,  a  mile  and  a  half 
distant,  awoke  the  wearied  and  harassed  man  at 
dead  of  night  and  brought  him  to  the  city  to  be 
presented  by  Benham  with  a  cartel  challenging 
and  threatening  his  life.  This  was  only  the 
beginning  of  blunders. 

Directly  afterwards,  the  same  Saturday,  the 
commissioners  on  both  sides  met  and  drew  articles. 
On  reading  them  one  would  conclude  that  they 
applied  to  a  treaty  or  conference  on  high  legislation 
between  puissant  nations,  so  lengthy  were  the 
written  preliminaries.  They  prepared  to  slaughter 
each  other  in  those  days  with  dignity  and  decorum. 
One  change  was  made  from  the  ordinary  pro- 
cedure in  duels.  The  word  " three"  was  omitted, 
it  being  agreed  that  the  contestants  should  shoot 
between  the  words  "fire — one,  two."  This  alter- 
ation was  insisted  upon  by  Broderick's  seconds. 
He  was  supposed  to  be  a  quicker  and  more 
accurate  shot  than  Terry;  besides,  for  humanity's 
sake,  the  shorter  the  period  to  aim  and  fire,  the 
less  the  danger.  Broderick  was  reputed  one  of 
the  best  shots  in  the  state,  while  Terry's  reputa- 
tion had  been  made  with  the  knife  and  not  the 
pistol.  But  if  two  men  now  will  separate  ten 
steps  and  face  each  other,  holding  the  duelling 
pistols  of  the  fifties,  with  long  barrels  that  shoot 
[2151 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

like  rifles,  they  will  realize  how  murderously  short 
the  space  and  how  difficult  to  miss  a  man. 

It  was  also  provided  in  the  articles  that  the 
choice  of  weapons  and  position  should  be  deter- 
mined by  chance  on  the  ground  which  was  selected 
and  described,  and  that  the  time  should  be  5:30 
the  following  Monday  morning. 

Broderick  occupied  Saturday  and  Sunday  in 
settling  his  personal  affairs  and,  it  is  said,  in  draw- 
ing his  last  testament.  He  was  under  no  delusion. 
He  was  aware  that  his  life  was  in  great  danger, 
that  the  crisis  had  arrived  which  he  foresaw,  when 
on  leaving  New  York  the  last  time  he  mournfully 
said  to  one  of  his  friends  who  accompanied  him 
to  the  departing  steamer:  " Good-bye.  You  may 
never  see  me  again."  Rumors  of  the  impending 
meeting  abounded  and  he  was  constantly  beset 
by  people  who  sought  particulars.  Duelling  was 
like  attending  the  theatre;  there  were  always 
spectators. 

On  Monday  morning  early,  the  actors  and  spec- 
tators, numbering  several  score,  were  on  the 
ground,  but  presently  there  appeared  the  sheriff, 
who  placed  the  duellists  under  arrest.  Being 
about  to  break  the  law  they  first  obeyed  the 
law  —  "I  kissed  her  ere  I  killed  her." 

During  the  day  their  respective  counsel  appeared 
before  the  justice,  and  he  decided  no  breach  of  the 
peace  had  been  committed.  Of  course  not,  hence 
[216] 


Provocation 

the  law  could  not  interfere  until  some  one  was 
shot  or  slain! 

All  Monday  afternoon  and  early  evening  Bro- 
derick  was  intensely  occupied  with  the  many 
urgent  questions  that  the  campaign  had  left  un- 
answered, and  arrangements  for  another  meeting 
were  left  entirely  to  his  seconds.  These  were 
cool,  brave  men.  McKibben  was  an  ex-Congress- 
man. Colton,  the  other,  had  been  sheriff  of 
Siskiyou  County  and,  almost  single-handed,  had 
quelled  a  miners'  mob.  But  they  had  had  no 
experience  in  the  scientific  art  of  shooting  in  cold 
blood.  They  had  never  participated  in  duels, 
either  as  principals  or  seconds,  and  they  did  not 
know  that  a  man  should  be  groomed  for  one  like 
a  horse  for  a  race. 

It  was  decided  that  the  second  meeting  should 
be  next  morning,  at  about  the  same  time  and  place. 
This  compact  was  concluded  late  on  Monday. 
The  distance  from  the  city  was  nearly  ten  miles, 
over  a  rough  and  hilly  road. 


[217] 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE    DUEL 

fin  HE  pistols  were  the  Ldfoucheux  type,  a  well- 
A  known  Belgian  make,  and  had  been  brought 
to  California  by  a  French  Creole  named  Beard. 
They  represented  the  most  approved  European 
duelling  pattern,  with  barrels  twelve  inches  in 
length,  but  the  stock  or  breech  construction  was 
different  from  that  of  ordinary  American  duelling 
pistols. 

Therefore  the  man  who  had  never  handled 
them  nor  adjusted  the  stock  to  his  hand  would 
certainly  be  at  a  disadvantage.  The  pistols  had 
been  well  tried  in  a  code  function  two  years  earlier 
between  two  Calif ornians  named  Ryer  and  Lang- 
don.  Langdon,  who  was  challenged  and  won 
choice  of  weapons,  selected  this  pair  and  also  the 
one  he  preferred.  Both  men  practised  with  the 
respective  pistols  allotted  to  them  the  day  before 
the  duel.  Dr.  Ryer,  in  firing  the  one  assigned  to 
him,  discovered  the  hair  trigger  was  so  light  and 
delicate  that  the  pistol  would  be  discharged  on 
a  sudden  jar  or  motion,  without  touching  the 
trigger.  Even  thus  forewarned  of  this  eccentric 
characteristic  he  was  unable  upon  the  field  to 
guard  fully  against  the  defect,  and  on  the  first 
[218] 


The  Duel 

two  exchanges  with  his  antagonist  his  bullets 
entered  the  ground  directly  in  front.  On  the 
third  round  he  succeeded  in  elevating  it  to  his 
adversary's  knee  before  it  was  discharged.  The 
bullet  struck  the  knee  and  stopped  the  duel, 
but  Ryer  stated  that  the  bullets  from  Langdon's 
weapon  whizzed  unpleasantly  past  his  ear,  clearly 
showing  that  the  other  pistol  was  not  similarly 
affected. 

This  pair  of  pistols  had  passed  into  the  posses- 
sion of  Dr.  Aylette  of  Stockton,  and  were  known 
as  the  "  Aylette  pistols."  Dr.  Aylette  was  Terry's 
intimate  friend  and  would  have  been  with  him  at 
the  duel  had  not  the  postponement  sent  him  home 
to  Stockton. 

Ex-Lieutenant  Governor  Daggett  has  written 
me  a  letter  from  which  the  annexed  is  an  excerpt : 

"I  had  a  talk  with  Senator  Langford  some  years 
ago,  who  was  a  life-long  friend  of  Terry's  and,  as 
I  believe  you  know,  a  reliable  and  truthful  man. 
Ben,  much  to  my  surprise,  related  to  me  the  fact 
that  when  the  duel  was  decided  upon,  Terry  came 
to  his  house  in  Lodi  for  advice,  and  together  they 
went  to  Dr.  Aylette  in  Stockton,  who  had  pistols 
and  was  authority  upon  such  matters. 

"They  all  went  out   to  the  doctor's  barn  to 

practice,  and  Ben  said  Terry  never  had  carried  a 

pistol  —  always  depended  upon  his  knife  —  and 

at  his  first  attempts  to  fire  at  the  words  'one, 

[219] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

two,  three/  he  could  not  hit  the  side  of  a  barn, 
while  Aylette  would  hit  the  size  of  a  man  every 
time.  Of  course  he  subsequently  learned." 

Senator  Langford  was  one  of  my  associates, 
representing  Stockton  in  the  State  Senate  of  Cali- 
fornia in  1885,  while  Daggett  was  lieutenant- 
governor  and  presiding  officer  of  the  Senate. 

Judge  Terry  was  a  frequent  visitor  to  the  sen- 
ate chamber,  and  Langford  made  us  acquainted. 
I  had  several  conferences  with  Terry  and  assisted 
in  the  passage  of  a  measure  that  he  strongly 
favored.  My  conception  of  him  was  that  of  an 
upright  and  capable  gentleman.  He  was  of  mas- 
sive build,  dignified  mien,  and  demanded  con- 
sideration. The  shadows  of  the  past  seemed  to 
cluster  around  his  form,  for  he  rarely  smiled 
and  was  stoically  silent.  In  my  researches  of  his 
career  while  a  jurist  I  can  find  no  reproaches 
by  any  one  as  to  the  character  or  the  justice 
of  his  decisions. 

It  would  appear  from  this  statement  of  Lang- 
ford  that  Terry  practised  with  these  " Aylette" 
pistols  more  than  once,  and  it  follows  that  he 
must  perforce  have  become  cognizant  of  the 
" tricky"  defect  or  fault  in  one  of  them.  As  the 
duel  occurred  over  two  months  after  his  speech, 
which  was  its  first  cause,  he  had  ample  time  to 
perfect  himself  in  the  use  of  the  pistols  and  de- 
liberately make  all  other  personal  arrangements, 
[220] 


The  Duel 

contemplating  without  doubt  that  the  meeting 
must  come. 

During  this  same  period,  Broderick  was  the 
leader  and,  therefore,  the  active  participant  in  an 
acrimonious  and  fatiguing  campaign,  from  which 
he  emerged  with  shattered  spirits,  depleted  health 
and  exhausted  body,  to  be  instantly  presented 
with  a  sinister  note  and  finally  a  deadly  cartel, 
all  within  three  days  after  the  election,  when  he 
should  have  been  resting  and  recovering  from  the 
struggle.  It  has  been  stated  that  he  had  con- 
tracted pneumonia  near  the  end  of  the  canvass, 
but  for  this  I  can  find  no  positive  authority. 

Monday  night  Broderick,  with  Colton  and  Mc- 
Kibben  and  a  surgeon,  entered  a  carriage  and 
were  driven  out  to  the  Lake  House,  a  little  inn  on 
the  old  Mission  Road,  some  two  miles  from  the 
sea,  and  the  same  distance  north  and  west  of  the 
rendezvous.  The  small  habitation  was  almost 
untenanted,  and  low  cots  with  scant  covering 
constituted  the  sleeping  accommodations.  It  was 
infested  with  sand  fleas  and  no  one  closed  an  eye- 
lid. In  the  raw  and  foggy  morning  they  arose 
unrefreshed,  and  without  a  stimulant  of  any  kind, 
not  even  a  drop  of  coffee,  the  quartette,  mounting 
the  vehicle,  drove  to  the  spot  where  they  descried 
Terry  and  his  party.  The  latter  had  also  passed 
the  night  in  the  vicinity,  but  it  was  in  a  comfort- 
able farmhouse  hard  by,  where  Terry  was  fur- 
[2211 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

nished  with  a  good  bed  and  a  warm  substantial 
breakfast  when  he  arose. 

A  group  of  men  who  had  arrived  on  foot,  on 
horseback  and  in  carriages  stood  at  a  distance 
on  a  knoll,  like  Romans  viewing  the  gladiators  in 
the  Coliseum.  They  numbered  some  three  score, 
and  had  left  the  city  after  midnight  for  the  picnic 
ground.  Broderick  and  Terry  did  not  salute  each 
other,  but  stood  apart  conversing  with  friends. 
A  city  gunsmith  had  brought  a  pair  of  pistols, 
which  had  never  been  fired  by  either  opponent. 
Broderick's  people  brought  none,  while  Terry's 
carried  the  "Aylette"  pistols.  The  seconds  of 
Broderick  won  the  position  and  the  giving  of  the 
words,  but  Terry's  won  a  far  more  important 
point,  the  selection  of  weapons.  Of  course  they 
chose  their  own,  and  why  not?  Does  one  go 
to  battle  with  one's  own  or  with  the  enemy's 
arms?  When  our  lives  are  hi  jeopardy  would 
we  not  fight  with  our  own  sword  and  shoot  with 
our  own  pistol,  which  we  know  and  have  used, 
rather  than  with  one  that  we  do  not  know  and 
had  not  used? 

Broderick  had  no  favorite  arms.  He  had  dis- 
carded pistols  since  his  election  to  the  Senate,  if 
not  before,  and,  though  reputed  a  dead  shot,  had 
not  handled  a  pistol  for  months.  The  "Aylettes" 
having  been  chosen,  the  next  thing  was  to  decide 
between  the  two  as  set  down  hi  number  eight  of 
[222] 


The  Duel 

the  articles  —  "  Choice  of  the  two  weapons  to  be 
determined  by  chance  as  in  Article  Seven." 

McKibben,  one  of  Broderick's  seconds,  snapped 
a  cap  on  one  of  the  pistols  and  was  satisfied.  He 
did  not  snap  a  cap  on  the  second,  as  he  should 
have  done,  and  I  can  find  no  evidence  as  to 
which  one  he  thus  tested.  Then  Terry's  seconds 
took  one  of  the  pistols  and  the  other  remained 
for  Broderick.  Thus  Article  Eight  —  tossing  for 
choice  of  pistols  —  was  not  fulfilled,  nor  did  the 
seconds  of  Broderick  so  demand. 

After  being  thus  allotted,  the  arms  were  sub- 
mitted to  the  gunsmith  for  examination.  He 
made  a  careful  inspection  and  pronounced  them 
in  good  order,  except  that  they  were  light  and  deli- 
cate on  the  triggers,  and  he  also  informed  one  of 
Terry's  seconds  that  the  one  intended  for  Broder- 
ick was  lighter  on  the  trigger  than  the  other. 
The  armorer,  Legardo,  so  testified  at  the  inquest 
over  Broderick's  dead  body,  and  he  added  that 
the  pistol  for  Broderick  was  so  delicate  that  it 
would  explode  by  a  sudden  jar  or  movement. 
This  evidence  was  not  contradicted.  Colton  and 
McKibben  stated  in  a  public  letter  the  day 
after  the  duel,  and  before  Broderick's  death, 
that  had  they  known  one  of  the  weapons  was 
lighter  on  the  trigger  than  the  other  they  would 
not  have  permitted  the  duel.  Why  did  they 
not  know?  Did  they  ask,  and  if  they  had 
[223] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

asked,  would  they  not  have  been  told  the  truth 
at  once? 

On  his  deathbed,  Broderick  said  that  he  did 
not  touch  the  trigger  of  the  pistol  as  he  raised  it, 
but  that  the  sudden  movement  in  elevating  his 
arm  from  the  vertical  position  caused  the  weapon 
to  explode  and  the  bullet  plunged  into  the  ground. 

While  this  prologue  to  the  tragedy  was  passing, 
Broderick  stood  apart  with  Elliott  J.  Moore.  He 
had  been  calm  and  collected,  but  when  he  was 
apprised  that  Terry's  seconds  had  won  the  choice 
and  saw  the  pistols,  he  complained  to  Moore  of 
the  inefficiency  of  his  seconds  and  said  they  were 
no  match  for  those  of  his  adversary.  He  spoke  of 
them  as  children  and  expressed  apprehension  lest 
they  might  unwittingly  " trade  away  his  life." 

The  pistols  were  loaded,  Broderick's  by  the 
armorer  and  Terry's  by  S.  H.  Brooks,  one  of  his 
faithful  friends.  The  ten  paces  were  measured 
and  white  marks  placed  to  establish  the  distance. 
The  men  were  told  to  take  their  stations. 

Up  to  now  Terry  seemed  agitated  and  measured 
the  space  with  an  uneasy  and  an  anxious  glance. 
Benham  approached  Terry  and  whispered.  Terry 
faintly  smiled,  became  calm,  and  thereafter  was 
as  cold  and  impassive  as  the  marble  statue  of 
El  Comendador.  Did  the  whispering  cadence 
breathe  aught  of  the  pistol? 

In  accord  with  the  nominal  rule,  both  men 
[224] 


The  Duel 

were  searched  by  a  second  of  the  other.  McKib- 
ben  merely  touched  Terry's  breast,  but  Benham 
manipulated  his  hands  up  and  down  Broderick's 
person,  as  if  he  might  discover  a  coat  of  mail. 
Broderick  said  to  a  friend  near  by  that  Benham 
had  treated  him  "as  an  officer  with  a  search  war- 
rant would  search  a  thief  for  stolen  property/' 
Six  years  before,  in  his  duel  with  Smith,  a  bullet 
from  Smith's  pistol  had  shattered  a  watch  in 
Broderick's  fob  pocket.  After  his  death  this 
broken  watch  was  found  in  his  safe.  Perhaps  the 
memory  of  this  episode  caused  Benham' s  rigor- 
ousness;  but  it  was  an  ominous  reminiscence  for 
Broderick.  Long  after  Benham  acknowledged 
that  he  was  not  courteous,  but  said  his  principal's 
life  being  in  danger,  he  was  bound  to  do  whatever 
was  possible  to  protect  him. 

But  why  did  Broderick's  seconds  permit  this 
unusual  and  irritating  personal  examination?  It 
angered  and  annoyed  their  principal,  when,  if 
ever,  his  calmness  should  not  have  been  disturbed. 
For  many  persons  the  indignity  would  have  suf- 
ficed to  adjourn  the  combat.  Men's  lives  are  lost 
by  actions  much  less  trivial. 

The  loaded  pistols  were  handed  to  the  duellists 
and  they  faced  each  other,  Terry,  straight  backed, 
wan  and  attenuated.  Broderick,  equally  tall,  but 
broader  and  heavier.  The  latter,  on  receiving  his 
weapon,  anxiously  examined  and  turned  it  about, 
[225] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

scrutinizing  and  measuring  its  stock  with  his  own 
hand.  He  seemed  uneasy,  adjusting  his  hand  to 
the  conformation  of  the  breech  and  presenting  an 
unsatisfied  appearance.  These  efforts  caused  him 
to  swerve  from  the  line,  and  in  response  to  Ben- 
ham's  suggestion,  one  of  his  perennially  gentle- 
manly seconds  spoke  to  him.  He  changed  his 
attitude,  but  his  body  slightly  projected  and 
offered  a  fairer  mark.  Duellists  stand  with  their 
sides  facing  one  another,  head  and  feet  hi  ver- 
tical plane,  so  that  no  part  of  the  body  shall  be 
unduly  exposed.  He  stood  with  his  back  to  the 
rising  sun,  driving  over  the  distant  sea  the  dark 
and  dismal  fogs  slowly  emerging  from  the  bleak, 
sombre  slopes  and  canons,  where  they  had  wan- 
dered to  and  fro  hi  the  restless  night.  The  white 
surf  of  the  broad  Pacific  rose  hi  vapory  laced  veils, 
enveloping  the  fleeing  fog  in  its  snowy  embrace, 
and  leaping  as  if  with  ardent  steps  to  greet  the 
coming  sun. 

Fronting  the  ocean  like  himself  was  California, 
that  California  on  which  he  stood  and  to  whose 
fame  and  future  he  had  consecrated  his  hopes, 
his  energy  and  devotion  —  California  with  her 
mountains  and  valleys,  her  glens,  where  the  gold 
grew,  and  her  hills  crested  with  gigantic  trees 
towering  to  the  stars  and  coeval  with  life.  With 
troubled  look  he  turned  to  the  pistol,  which  was 
of  a  type  he  had  never  used  and  had  hardly  ever 
[226] 


The  Duel 

seen.  He  was  too  discerning  not  to  realize  in- 
stantly his  disadvantage,  and  with  nervous  motions 
he  continued  to  adjust  the  stock,  which  did  not 
seem  to  fit  his  hand.  Even  after  the  words  had 
been  " exemplified"  by  Colton  and  repeated  by 
Benham  he  did  not  cease  to  labor  at  the  weapon. 

Presently  Colton  said,  "  Gentlemen,  are  you 
ready?"  Terry,  who  had  stood  immovable  and 
imperturbable  since  the  whispering,  directly  re- 
plied, "  Ready."  Broderick,  who  wore  a  soft 
black  hat,  pulled  down  low  over  his  forehead,  still 
fingered  the  intractable  arm,  and  it  was  four  or 
five  seconds  after  Terry's  response  that,  with  a 
nod  to  Colton,  he  also  answered  "  Ready." 

The  duellists  held  their  pistols  vertically  to  the 
side,  with  the  muzzles  pointing  downward.  Col- 
ton said,  after  a  moment's  interval,  "Fire  —  one 
—  two  — "  like  the  measured  strokes  of  a  cathedral 
clock.  Broderick  fired  as  "one"  was  pronounced, 
and  Terry  at  "two."  Broderick's  bullet  struck 
the  earth  midway  between  himself  and  his  ad- 
versary. Terry's  shot  entered  Broderick's  body 
about  an  inch  and  a  half  above  the  right  breast, 
penetrating  the  lung.  Broderick  swerved,  stag- 
gered and  gradually  dropped  on  his  left  side  until 
his  left  shoulder  rested  on  the  sward,  the  useless 
pistol  dropping  from  his  nerveless  grasp.  He 
told  Baker  on  his  death  couch  between  gasps  and 
with  the  blood  gushing  from  his  breast,  "Baker, 
F2271 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

when  I  was  struck  I  tried  to  stand  firm,  but  the 
blow  blinded  me  and  I  could  not." 

After  Broderick' s  fall,  Benham  walked  to  Terry, 
who  instantly  said,  "The  wound  is  not  mortal. 
I  have  hit  two  inches  too  far  out."  From  a  man 
who  was  presumed  not  to  know  how  to  shoot,  this 
revelation  of  expert  knowledge  and  confidence 
is  marvellous.  The  physician  who  accompanied 
Broderick's  party  carried  a  small  bag  of  surgical 
instruments,  from  which  a  saw  protruded,  as  if 
he  were  going  to  hospital  after  a  battle.  He  lost 
his  head,  became  confused,  and  not  until  the  other 
doctor  came  forward  was  anything  done  to  relieve 
the  stricken  man's  anguish. 

A  carriage  and  mattress  were  brought  and  Bro- 
derick was  conveyed  ten  miles  to  Black  Point  and 
placed  in  the  mansion  of  Leonidas  Haskell,  the 
same  residence  in  which  he  had  been  aroused  at 
midnight  three  days  before  to  receive  the  challenge. 
Chloroform  was  administered,  which,  by  affecting 
his  nervous  system,  strung  to  the  utmost  tension 
in  the  three  days'  harassing  anxiety  preceding  the 
combat,  deadened  the  excruciating  agony.  Be- 
fore the  contest  he  expressed  the  resolve  not  to 
shoot  Terry  above  the  hips,  as  he  considered  that 
he  had  no  quarrel  with  him.  That  is  thought  to  be 
the  reason  why  he  pulled  the  black  sombrero  so  low 
over  his  brow. 

In  delirium  he  recalled  this  determination  and 
[228] 


The  Duel 

the  conviction  that  he  was  to  be  hunted  until 
killed.  He  talked  ramblingly  of  the  election  de- 
feat; of  those  great  principles  for  which  he  had 
striven;  of  the  fact  that  he  had  been  deserted  by 
the  people,  and  that  he  was  to  be  silenced.  "  They 
have  killed  me  because  I  was  opposed  to  a  corrupt 
administration  and  the  extension  of  slavery." 

The  sentiment  of  the  startled  and  horrified  com- 
munity is  perhaps  shown  in  an  editorial  in  one  of 
the  city  papers  the  day  after  the  duel  and  while 
Life  and  Death  grappled  over  his  prostrate  form. 
It  said:  "What  has  this  man  done  that  he  should 
be  hunted  and  abused?  Wherein  was  his  great 
offence  against  the  land  or  the  nation?  What  law 
of  morality  or  religion  did  he  violate?  What 
treason  did  he  commit  against  his  country?  What 
widow  did  he  wrong  —  what  orphan  did  he  de- 
fraud? What  act  of  his  in  an  official  capacity 
ever  stained  his  hand?  What  was  his  crime?" 
Broderick's  final  expression,  as  he  lapsed  into 
death's  lethargy,  was:  "I  die;  protect  my  honor." 

He  was  shot  Tuesday  morning  and  died  Friday 
morning,  September  16,  1859.  The  intelligence, 
like  all  doleful  tidings,  spread  like  a  pestilence. 
People  refused  to  credit  that  which  their  hearts 
dreaded  —  that  he  had  been  thus  slain  in  the  very 
morning  of  his  career;  that  his  sun  had  set  while  it 
was  yet  day.  But  the  conviction,  the  sad  con- 
viction, was  verity.  Men's  hearts  sank;  eyes  were 
[229] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

moistened  by  tears  which  the  sternest  pride  of 
manhood  could  not  repress,  and  voices  were  hushed 
to  earnest  whisperings.  They  left  their  daily  voca- 
tions and  gathered  in  groups  discussing  the  one 
topic,  some  offering  consolation,  others  generous 
tribute  to  the  untimely  dead.  There  was  no  con- 
certed signal  of  woe,  no  set  form  or  phase  of  sorrow; 
but  gloom  like  a  black  mist  crested  the  town  and 
its  expression  was  silence.  There  was  no  parade  of 
mourning,  no  ostentatious  grief.  Men  asked  not 
what  others  did,  nor  did  they  care.  Moved  by  the 
fulness  of  their  individual  sorrow,  they  suspended 
business,  draped  doors  and  repaired  slowly  to  their 
homes. 

San  Francisco  never  had  such  a  day  in  its  stormy 
existence.  There  are  those  living  who  yet  recall 
the  universal  gloom.  Meanwhile  the  dead  sena- 
tor's body  was  conveyed  to  the  city  and  placed  in 
a  chamber  of  the  Union  Hotel,  on  the  corner  of 
Merchant  and  Kearny  Streets,  to  be  viewed  by 
all  those  who  venerated  martyrs. 

On  Sunday  afternoon  the  body  was  removed 
opposite,  to  the  Plaza,  deposited  on  a  catafalque, 
and  without  music,  banners,  religion,  organiza- 
tions or  chairman,  but  in  the  presence  of  the  dead 
and  of  thirty  thousand  silent  men,  Colonel  Baker 
pronounced  a  discourse  almost  unrivalled  in  Eng- 
lish literature. 

The  Monte  Diablo  range  to  the  east,  recalling 
[230] 


The  Duel 

the  Alban  Hills;  the  sparkling  September  sun, 
scarce  equalled  by  Italy's  brilliant  sunshine;  the 
seven  hills  of  San  Francisco,  like  the  seven  hills  of 
Rome  —  the  former  towering  o'er  the  Plaza  where 
lay  the  stricken  senator,  while  the  latter,  looking 
over  the  forum,  on  the  mangled  body  of  the  first 
of  the  Caesars  —  surely,  to  the  modern  Antony, 
who  lived  and  died  as  did  his  ancient  prototype, 
the  parallel  must  have  occurred  when  he  exclaims : 
"  What  hopes  are  buried  with  him  in  the  grave." 

He  sleeps  at  the  base  of  Lone  Mountain,  itself 
as  lonely  as  he,  where,  facing  the  lordly  Pacific, 
he  lies,  a  pathetic  and  memorable  sacrifice  to  the 
minotaur  of  human  slavery. 


[231] 


CHAPTER  XIII 

CONCLUSION 

ON  the  scroll  of  mankind,  in  the  list  of  those 
who  led,  to  how  many  of  the  names  might  be 
added  as  an  epitaph:  "What  might  have  been!" 
Broderick  might  have  been  President  of  the  United 
States,  for  he  represented  better  than  Johnson 
that  class  of  Democrats  who  became  Republicans 
because  they  were  Americans,  and  if  the  latter 
was  from  the  South,  the  former  was  from  the  West. 
Nor  was  the  possibility  so  remote.  His  senatorial 
opponents  felt  and  recognized  his  singular  strength 
and  forwardness.  Said  one  of  them  during  the 
customary  eulogies  pronounced  in  the  Senate  on 
the  demise  of  a  member:  "His  was  a  formidable 
name  and  presence.  In  my  career  and  reading, 
I  know  of  no  man  who  in  little  more  than  a  year 
acquired  so  distinctive  a  standing  in  the  Senate 
as  Broderick.  Had  he  lived,  he  would  have  gone 
far."  Speculation  on  what  would  have  followed 
if,  as  Vice-President  instead  of  Johnson,  he  had 
succeeded  Lincoln,  is  futile.  And  still:  "What 
might  have  been!"  The  history  of  the  country 
would  have  been  altered,  for  he  was  a  very  dif- 
ferent personage  from  the  man  who  assumed  the 
mighty  station  left  vacant  by  Lincoln.  It  would 
[2321 


Conclusion 

have  been  better  for  the  South,  for  our  whole 
country,  and  for  the  world. 

Whatever  may  be  said  of  his  life,  it  can  be 
argued  plausibly  that  his  death  saved  California, 
and  probably  the  Pacific  Coast,  to  the  Union. 
His  fearful  and  bloody  end  not  only  shocked  and 
terrified  the  Calif ornians,  but  it  made  them  reflect 
soberly.  During  his  life,  his  last  warnings  had 
made  but  an  evanescent  impression,  but  the  dead 
man's  speeches  were  republished  and  read  by 
thousands. 

In  the  election  just  previous  to  the  duel,  his 
party  had  not  received  a  third  of  the  total  poll, 
and  it  was  well  said  that  if  he  had  been  killed 
before  instead  of  after  the  election,  the  results 
would  have  been  different.  In  the  meanwhile, 
his  triumphant  opponents,  secure  in  the  absence 
of  the  only  man  who  knew  and  might  thwart  their 
designs,  continued  their  matured  schemes  for 
attaching  California  to  the  South.  The  legislature 
passed  a  resolution  authorizing  the  inhabitants 
of  that  part  of  California  below  the  36th  parallel 
to  vote  upon  the  question  of  separation  from  the 
state.  This  degree  of  latitude  was  the  dividing 
line  over  which  slavery  could  not  step  throughout 
the  entire  breadth  of  the  continent. 

This  plan  was  promoted  so  that  if  the  Northern 
portion  of  California  could  not  be  seduced,  at 
least  this  sparsely  settled  region  might  be  formed 
[233] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

into  an  additional  slave  state.  Latham  had  been 
chosen  governor  at  the  election  preceding  Broder- 
ick's  death.  A  few  days  after  his  inauguration, 
he  resigned,  and  was  elected  senator  to  fill  Bro- 
derick's  unexpired  term.  Latham  wrote  a  letter 
to  the  President,  advancing  reasons  for  the  power 
and  legality  of  a  state  to  divide,  and  especially 
claiming  that  in  California  it  was  an  equitable 
and  necessary  proceeding.  The  California  sena- 
tors, together  with  our  congressional  representa- 
tives, labored  earnestly  for  this  monstrous 
iniquity!  In  the  Senate  Gwin  openly  said:  "I 
believe  that  the  slave  holding  states  of  this 
Confederacy  can  establish  a  separate  and  inde- 
pendent government  that  will  be  impregnable  to 
the  assaults  of  all  foreign  enemies,"  and  he  went 
on  to  say  that  if  the  Southern  States  went  out  of 
the  Union,  "  California  would  be  found  with  the 
South."  All  this  was  very  clear  and  coherent.  It 
indicated  the  settled  and  intelligible  purpose  of 
those  controlling  the  states'  policies.  More  and 
more  the  people  missed  Broderick.  More  and  more 
they  felt  the  compass  of  his  enlightened  intellect. 
From  a  general  contribution  they  erected  a  noble 
monument  to  his  memory.  They  named  streets 
and  towns  after  him,  and  stigmatized  with  fierce 
invectives  those  opposing  him  in  the  duel. 

There  came  rumors  that  Broderick  and  Douglas 
had  not  been  in  entire  accord  in  the  last  days, 
[234] 


Conclusion 

and  yet  Broderick  had  resented  the  personal  in- 
sults meted  out  so  plentifully  to  Douglas  in  the 
Senate.  The  latter  told  him  he  had  a  family, 
was  poor  and  could  not  afford  to  die.  Broderick 
replied:  "I  have  no  kin  nor  kindred,  and  if  you 
will  permit  me,  I  shall  myself  answer  all  personal 
affronts  to  you,  and  I  will  take  care  of  them"; 
yet  when  one  of  the  seconds  of  Terry  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  President  to  a  lucrative  federal 
position  in  California,  Douglas,  the  friend  of 
Broderick,  spoke  and  voted  for  his  confirmation. 

These  things  weighed  with  the  Northern  Dem- 
ocrats in  California,  who  numbered  a  good  half  of 
the  population.  It  was  remembered  that  Bro- 
derick had  been  gravitating  towards  the  Repub- 
lican road;  that  he  had  nominated  a  Republican 
for  governor  on  his  ticket  at  the  last  election ;  that 
he  had  offered  to  coalesce  with  the  Republicans; 
and  that  he  had  said  they  were  the  only  people 
"  defiantly  right  on  slavery."  The  words  and 
deeds  of  a  man  very  often  augment  in  value  and 
force  when  he  does  not  live  to  repeat  them.  Still 
there  must  be  a  volcanic  force  suddenly  to  change 
a  multitude  or  a  state.  The  Republican  vote  only 
stood  ten  thousand  —  a  mere  tenth  of  the  whole. 

While  these  unusual  and  painful  thoughts  were 

in  the  minds  of  men  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  the 

Eastern  States  were  the  centre  of  action.     The 

Democrats  had  separated  into  two  distinct  bodies, 

[235] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

only  allied  by  the  same  appellation.  One  section 
nominated  Douglas,  and  the  other  Breckenridge; 
the  Republicans  chose  Lincoln  as  leader.  The 
latter  was  resolute  against  slavery.  The  Breck- 
enridge policy  was  firmly  for  slavery,  and  the 
other  wing  of  Democracy,  under  the  leadership  of 
Douglas,  was  conservative  and  nothing  else.  It 
meant  much  or  little,  as  men  chose.  At  least  the 
other  two  antagonists  knew  what  they  wanted,  and 
so  affirmed.  Throughout  California,  the  Western 
bastion  of  the  republic,  the  struggle  was  intense 
and  vehement. 

The  same  conditions  that  applied  to  the  declared 
policies  of  the  factions  appertained  also  to  their 
individual  supporters.  While  the  Republicans  and 
Breckenridge  Democrats  were  clear  and  deter- 
mined in  their  addresses  and  demands,  the  Douglas 
Democrats  knew  not  what  to  do.  They  were 
"  Douglas  Democrats,"  but  it  was  difficult  to 
define  the  definition.  Without  the  counsels  and 
admonitions  of  Broderick,  the  Northern  Demo- 
crats, who  composed  the  moiety  of  the  Douglas 
contingent,  were  lost,  like  the  children  of  Israel. 
They  could  not  vote  for  Breckenridge,  for  that 
meant  slavery,  abhorrent  to  their  instincts  and 
to  human  nature;  they  dared  not  turn  to  Lincoln, 
for  that  meant  desertion  and  destruction  of  the 
party  that  had  governed  the  nation  for  forty  long 
years,  and  to  which  they  had  been  attached  since 
[236] 


Conclusion 

childhood.  Yet  Douglas  meant  nothing,  and  they 
realized  his  impotence  in  the  future;  for  it  is  only 
those  who  fight  that  win,  not  those  who  temporize 
and  cry  "Halt!"  to  both  combatants. 

In  this  dilemma,  the  campaign  commenced  and 
continued  in  California.  But  the  positive  and 
bitter  statements  of  the  Southern  Democrats, 
and  their  clear  and  frank  declarations  of  seces- 
sion and  war  if  Lincoln  should  be  chosen  Chief 
Magistrate,  gradually  sapped  the  fealty  of  Douglas 
Democrats  to  their  party  allegiance.  This  was  the 
condition  relatively  in  many  other  states,  but  I 
am  writing  only  of  California,  where  the  proportion 
of  those  who  doubted,  distrusted  and  hesitated  to 
decide  was  very  large.  I  cannot  but  repeat  that 
the  Republicans  could  only  win  by  accessions 
from  their  opponents,  for  they  constituted  a 
slender  minority. 

While  thus  wandering  and  wavering,  suddenly 
there  came  down  from  Oregon  Colonel  E.  D.  Baker, 
clad  in  the  authority  of  a  United  States  senator. 
After  the  death  of  Broderick,  he  had  repaired 
to  this  adjoining  state.  The  Oregonians,  mostly 
Northern  men,  had  read  of  his  career  in  California 
and  his  friendship  and  love  for  Broderick,  with 
whom  their  memory  was  charged,  for  many  of  the 
people  had  changed  their  homes  from  California 
to  its  neighbor.  With  the  decision  and  promp- 
titude that  even  to-day  makes  Oregon's  political 
[237] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

actions  commented  on  by  all  Americans,  they 
selected  Colonel  Baker  as  their  senator,  and  he 
was  now  on  his  way  to  Washington  via  San 
Francisco. 

English  by  birth,  he  had  led  a  regiment  of 
American  volunteers  in  the  Mexican  War.  After- 
wards he  went  to  California  and  easily  became  its 
most  polished  and  distinguished  advocate.  First 
foes,  then  friends,  Broderick  and  Baker  were  of 
similar  yet  dissimilar  types.  Broderick  was  stern, 
Baker  sunny;  the  former  was  always  a  Democrat, 
the  latter  was  everything  —  Democrat,  American 
Party,  Republican.  One  was  ascetic,  the  other 
convivial.  One  left  a  fortune;  the  other  nothing, 
though  he  had  received  princely  fees.  Baker 
possessed  extraordinary  oratory  of  the  Attic  type, 
in  the  sense  that  he  employed  terse,  concise  sen- 
tences, that  together  constituted  a  living  image. 
Broderick  only  addressed  public  assemblages 
towards  the  end  of  his  existence.  But  both  were 
patriots,  and  Broderick's  warnings  and  apprehen- 
sions, expressed  from  knowledge  derived  in  his 
Washington  experiences,  impressed  and  convinced 
the  other  man. 

Baker,  having  less  political  prestige  to  endanger, 
became  a  Republican  earlier  than  Broderick :  that 
is,  perhaps,  all  that  can  be  said.  Broderick's 
last  words  and  message  were  addressed  to  the 
faithful  friend  weeping  by  his  bedside:  "I  die; 
[238] 


Conclusion 

protect  my  honor."  And  nobly  did  Baker  fulfil 
the  dying  adjuration.  Hence,  the  friends  of 
Broderick  asked  this  friend  of  Broderick  to  stay 
a  day  and  advise  them. 

He  spoke  to  the  populace  in  the  street,  and  was 
never  more  sincere,  impressive  and  dignified.  It 
is  still  cited  as  the  most  memorable  oration  ever 
pronounced  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  "  Where  the 
feet  of  my  youth  were  planted,  there  by  Freedom 
my  feet  shall  stand.  I  will  walk  beneath  her 
banner,  I  will  glory  hi  her  strength.  I  have 
watched  her  in  history  struck  down  on  a  hundred 
chosen  fields  of  battle;  I  have  seen  her  friends  fly 
from  her;  I  have  seen  her  foes  gather  around  her; 
I  have  seen  them  bind  her  to  the  stake;  I  have  seen 
them  give  her  ashes  to  the  winds,  regathering  them 
again  that  they  might  scatter  them  yet  more 
widely:  but,  when  they  turned  to  exult,  I  have  seen 
her  again  meet  them  face  to  face,  resplendent  in 
complete  steel  and  brandishing  in  her  strong  right 
hand  a  flaming  sword,  red  with  insufferable  light. 
I  take  courage;  the  people  gather  around  her;  the 
Genius  of  America  will  at  last  lead  her  sons  to 
freedom."  He  reminded  the  listening  thousands 
that  Broderick  had  been  his  best  friend;  that  he 
had  given  him  his  last  message;  that  although 
dead  only  a  year,  yet  with  what  appalling  swiftness 
were  his  predictions  being  verified.  He  cited 
from  the  platforms  of  both  Democratic  factions, 
[239] 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

and  asked  how  Broderick  devotees  could  sanction 
such  statements.  He  said  that  he  was  more  of  a 
Californian  than  an  Oregonian,  and  more  of  an 
American  than  either.  "I  come,  a  Republican 
senator  from  Oregon.  If  Broderick  were  living, 
he  would  be  standing  by  my  side  to-night,  as  a 
Republican  senator  from  California,  entreating 
and  counselling  you  to  vote  for  Lincoln  as  the  only 
path  to  be  trodden  by  men  of  freedom."  He  left 
directly,  and  contrary  to  established  custom, 
addressed  the  Senate  within  a  month  after  taking 
his  seat.  But  war  was  near,  and  Baker  was  from 
the  nervous  West. 

During  a  debate  in  which  a  senator  from  the 
South  Land  uttered  virulent  anti-Union  phrases, 
one  of  the  Northern  senators  who  followed  cried: 
"What  would  have  been  done  by  the  Romans  if  a 
senator  had  expressed  in  the  Roman  Senate  such 
treasonable  words?"  Baker  was  sitting,  listening 
to  the  discussion,  clad  in  the  uniform  of  a  General 
of  Volunteers,  to  which  he  had  just  been  appointed 
by  the  President.  Such  a  costume  was  an  innova- 
tion in  the  Senate.  Hearing  the  question,  Baker 
rose  to  his  feet,  placed  his  hand  on  sword  hilt  and 
thundered  forth:  "He  would  have  been  thrown 
from  the  Tarpeian  rock."  With  electric  quickness 
men's  minds  reverted  to  Catiline  and  Cicero,  and 
the  words  resounded  over  the  land  to  stir  people 
to  Roman  deeds. 

[240] 


Conclusion 

A  few  weeks  later  he  fought  and,  foremost,  fell. 
The  remains  were  tenderly  transferred  to  the 
Pacific  Coast,  and  he  lies  at  the  feet  of  Broderick, 
bathed  in  the  sunshine  of  the  land  and  the  liberty 
that  they  helped  to  preserve.  They  constitute 
the  two  senators  of  the  fifties  for  whom  the  great 
West  will  ever  mourn. 

Baker's  requiem  discourse  in  San  Francisco 
converted  and  convinced  the  multitude  who  sought 
light.  The  manes  of  Broderick,  summoned  from 
the  grave  to  hear  and  confirm  the  living  man's 
declarations,  evoked  memories  and  comparisons. 
Baker  was  only  saying  just  what  Broderick  had 
said  the  year  before,  and  for  which  it  was 
said  he  was  slain.  The  future  that  he  had 
foreseen  was  upon  them,  and  they  must  choose, 
and  at  once. 

The  sparkling  speech  of  Baker,  coupled  with  the 
name  of  Broderick,  already  respected  as  a  hero  and 
victim,  aroused  enthusiasm,  resolution  and  deci- 
sion. Though  the  whole  congressional  representa- 
tives stood  for  Breckenridge,  the  people  sprang 
to  the  new  banner,  and  at  the  election  which 
followed,  isolated  and  racked  California,  the  elf- 
child  of  the  Union,  selected  Abraham  Lincoln  as 
its  choice  for  President.  The  cardinal  opponents 
of  Baker  and  Broderick  left  shortly  thereafter 
and  joined  the  Southern  armies,  where  they  all 
exhibited  bravery  and  endured  privations  equally 
[2411 


The  Life  of  David  C.  Broderick 

with  the  most  patient.  Following  their  departure, 
the  legislature  declared  that: 

"  California  is  ready  to  maintain  the  rights  and 
honor  of  the  National  Government  at  home  and 
abroad,  and  at  all  times  to  respond  to  any  requisi- 
tion that  may  be  made  upon  her  to  defend  the 
Republic  against  foreign  or  domestic  foes." 

It  was  also  felt  that  such  reparation  and  rose- 
mary remembrance  as  words  could  imply  were 
due  to  the  one  who  had  fallen  so  early,  and  whose 
teachings  had  proven  so  truthful  and  prophetic. 
Referring  to  the  resolutions  of  the  legislature  of 
1859  censuring  Broderick,  this  body  in  1860,  only 
a  year  later,  declared  that  those  former  resolutions 
were  " unjust  to  his  character  while  living,  and 
derogatory  to  the  honorable  and  patriotic  fame 
which  a  true  and  faithful  record  of  his  acts  will 
always  accord  to  his  memory.  That  they  were 
not  true  in  fact,  and  were  not  sanctioned  by  the 
people  of  California,  but  on  the  contrary  the  people 
of  this  state  will  cherish  with  profound  respect 
the  memory  and  character  of  the  late  Broderick, 
adorned,  as  his  character  eminently  was,  by 
integrity,  firmness  and  patriotism." 

These  sober  and  sincere  expressions  close  be- 
fittingly  his  history.  There  should  no  more  be 
said,  except  to  add  that  in  the  coming  ages  his 
career  will  be  to  California  a  sad  memory. 

[242] 


APPENDIX 


DAVID  S.  TERRY  was  indicted  for  his  duel  with  Bro- 
derick,  as  it  contravened  the  state  laws.  The  case  was 
transferred  to  another  county  and  there  dismissed.  During 
the  Civil  War  he  joined  the  Confederate  forces,  was  wounded 
at  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  and  attained  the  rank  of  Brig- 
adier General. 

At  the  close  of  the  conflict  he  repaired  to  Mexico,  but  returned 
to  California  in  1869,  and,  locating  again  at  Stockton,  resumed 
the  practice  of  the  legal  profession. 

Some  years  later  he  became  advocate  for  a  lady  who  was  one 
of  the  principals  in  a  noted  divorce  suit.  Subsequently  they  were 
espoused.  Legal  contentions  arising  from  the  first  marriage 
caused  her  to  appear  before  the  Circuit  Court  held  in  Oakland 
over  which  Stephen  J.  Field,  Associate  Justice  of  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court,  presided. 

In  open  court  the  Justice  proceeded  to  read  the  decision.  As 
he  continued,  the  tenor  was  manifestly  unfavorable  to  Mrs. 
Terry's  claims.  She  suddenly  arose  and  interrupted  the  reading 
by  violently  upbraiding  and  denouncing  Field.  He  ordered  her 
removal  from  the  judicial  chamber.  She  resisted,  and  Terry, 
coming  to  his  wife's  assistance,  drew  a  knife  and  assaulted  the 
bailiffs.  He  was  disarmed,  both  parties  secured,  and  the  Court 
of  three  judges  sentenced  Mrs.  Terry  to  one  month  and  her 
husband  to  six  months'  imprisonment,  which  they  served  in  full. 

Justice  Field  returned  to  Washington,  and  the  next  year,  in 
fulfilment  of  his  official  requirements,  came  again  to  California. 
He  had  been  informed  that  Terry  uttered  threats  of  violence 
against  his  person,  and  therefore  he  was  accompanied  by  a  man 
employed  by  the  Government  to  act  in  the  capacity  of  guard. 

On  their  journey  from  Los  Angeles  to  San  Francisco,  Field 
and  his  companion,  with  other  passengers,  left  the  train  to  lunch 

[243] 


Appendix 

at  a  small  hamlet  named  Lathrop.  Terry  and  his  wife,  who 
had  boarded  the  cars  en  route,  also  descended  and  shortly  after- 
ward entered  the  same  restaurant.  A  few  minutes  later,  Terry 
arose  from  his  seat,  walked  directly  back  of  Field  and  slapped 
or  struck  the  venerable  justice  on  the  face,  while  he  was  yet 
seated.  Neagle,  the  guard  who  attended  Field,  leaped  to  his 
feet  and  shot  Terry  twice,  who  fell  and  died  instantly. 

This  event  occurred  on  the  15th  of  August,  1889,  not  quite 
thirty  years  from  the  day  when  Terry  shot  Broderick. 


[244] 


ORATION  BY  COL.  E.  D.    BAKER 

DELIVERED  OVER  THE  DEAD  BODY  OF  DAVID  C. 
BRODERICK,  AT  PORTSMOUTH  SQUARE,  SAN 
FRANCISCO,  ON  THE  18ra  OF  SEPTEMBER,  1859 

Citizens  of  California. 

A  SENATOR  lies  dead  in  our  midst!  He  is  wrapped  in  a 
bloody  shroud,  and  we,  to  whom  his  toils  and  cares  were 
given,  are  about  to  bear  him  to  the  place  appointed  for  all  the 
living.  It  is  not  fit  that  such  a  man  should  pass  to  the  tomb  un- 
heralded; it  is  not  fit  that  such  a  life  should  steal  unnoticed  to 
its  close;  it  is  not  fit  that  such  a  death  should  call  forth  no  rebuke, 
or  be  followed  by  no  public  lamentation.  It  is  this  conviction 
which  impels  the  gathering  of  this  assemblage.  We  are  here  of 
every  station  and  pursuit,  of  every  creed  and  character,  each  in 
his  capacity  of  citizen,  to  swell  the  mournful  tribute  which  the 
majesty  of  the  people  offers  to  the  unreplying  dead.  He  lies 
today  surrounded  by  little  of  funeral  pomp.  No  banners  droop 
above  the  bier,  no  melancholy  music  floats  upon  the  reluctant 
air.  The  hopes  of  high-hearted  friends  droop  like  fading  flowers 
upon  his  breast,  and  the  struggling  sigh  compels  the  tear  in  eyes 
that  seldom  weep.  Around  him  are  those  who  have  known  him 
best  and  loved  him  longest;  who  have  shared  the  triumph,  and 
endured  the  defeat.  Near  him  are  the  gravest  and  noblest  of 
the  state,  possessed  by  a  grief  at  once  earnest  and  sincere;  while 
beyond,  the  masses  of  the  people  whom  he  loved,  and  for  whom 
his  life  was  given,  gather  like  a  thunder-cloud  of  swelling  and 
indignant  grief. 

In  such  a  presence,  fellow-citizens,  let  us  linger  for  a  moment 
at  the  portals  of  the  tomb,  whose  shadowy  arches  vibrate  to  the 
public  heart,  to  speak  a  few  brief  words  of  the  man,  of  his  life, 
and  of  his  death. 

[245] 


Appendix 

Mr.  Broderick  was  born  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  in  1819. 
He  was  of  Irish  descent,  and  of  obscure  and  respectable  parent- 
age; he  had  little  of  early  advantages,  and  never  summoned  to 
his  aid  a  complete  and  finished  education.  His  boyhood  and 
his  early  manhood  were  passed  in  the  City  of  New  York,  and  the 
loss  of  his  father  early  stimulated  him  to  the  efforts  which  main- 
tained his  surviving  mother  and  brother,  and  served  also  to  fix 
and  form  his  character  even  in  his  boyhood.  His  love  for  his 
mother  was  his  first  and  most  distinctive  trait  of  character,  and 
when  his  brother  died  —  an  early  and  sudden  death  —  the 
shock  gave  a  serious  and  reflective  cast  to  his  habits  and  his 
thoughts,  which  marked  them  to  the  last  hour  of  his  life. 

He  was  always  filled  with  pride,  and  energy,  and  ambition  — 
his  pride  was  in  the  manliness  and  force  of  his  character,  and  no 
man  had  more  reason  than  he  for  such  pride.  His  energy  was 
manifest  in  the  most  resolute  struggles  with  poverty  and  ob- 
scurity, and  his  ambition  impelled  him  to  seek  a  foremost  place 
in  the  great  race  for  honorable  power. 

Up  to  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  California,  his  life  had  been 
passed  amid  events  incident  to  such  a  character.  Fearless, 
self-reliant,  open  in  his  enmities,  warm  in  his  friendships,  wedded 
to  his  opinions,  and  marching  directly  to  his  purpose  through 
and  over  all  opposition,  his  career  was  checkered  with  success 
and  defeat:  but  even  in  defeat  his  energies  were  strength- 
ened and  his  character  developed.  When  he  reached  these  shores, 
his  keen  observation  taught  him  at  once  that  he  trod  a  broad 
field,  and  that  a  higher  career  was  before  him.  He  had  no  false 
pride:  sprung  from  a  people  and  of  a  race  whose  vocation  was 
labor,  he  toiled  with  his  own  hands,  and  sprang  at  a  bound  from 
the  workshop  to  the  legislative  hall.  From  that  time  there  con- 
gregated around  him  and  against  him  the  elements  of  success 
and  defeat  —  strong  friendships,  bitter  enmities,  high  praise, 
malignant  calumnies  —  but  he  trod  with  a  free  and  a  proud  step 
that  onward  path  which  has  led  him  to  glory  and  the  grave. 

It  would  be  idle  for  me,  at  this  hour  and  in  this  place,  to  speak 
of  all  that  history  with  unmitigated  praise:  it  will  be  idle  for  his 
enemies  hereafter  to  deny  his  claim  to  noble  virtues  and  high 

[246] 


Appendix 


purposes.  When,  in  the  Legislature,  he  boldly  denounced  the 
special  legislation  which  is  the  curse  of  a  new  country,  he  proved 
his  courage  and  his  rectitude.  When  he  opposed  the  various 
and  sometimes  successful  schemes  to  strike  out  the  salutary 
provisions  of  the  Constitution  which  guarded  free  labor,  he  was 
true  to  all  the  better  instincts  of  his  life.  When,  prompted  by 
ambition  and  the  admiration  of  his  friends,  he  first  sought  a  seat 
in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  he  aimed  by  legitimate  effort 
to  attain  the  highest  of  all  earthly  positions,  and  failed  with 
honor. 

It  is  my  duty  to  say  that,  in  my  judgment,  when  at  a  later 
period  he  sought  to  anticipate  the  Senatorial  election,  he  com- 
mitted an  error  which  I  think  he  lived  to  regret.  It  would  have 
been  a  violation  of  the  true  principles  of  representative  govern- 
ment, which  no  reason,  public  or  private,  could  justify,  and 
could  never  have  met  the  permanent  approval  of  good  and  wise 
men.  Yet,  while  I  say  this  over  his  bier,  let  me  remind  you  of 
the  temptation  to  such  an  error,  of  the  plans  and  reasons  which 
prompted  it  —  of  the  many  good  purposes  it  was  intended  to 
effect.  And  if  ambition,  "the  last  infirmity  of  noble  minds," 
led  him  for  a  moment  from  the  better  path,  let  me  remind  you 
how  nobly  he  regained  it. 

It  is  impossible  to  speak  within  the  limits  of  this  address  of 
the  events  of  that  session  of  the  Legislature  at  which  he  was 
elected  to  the  Senate  of  the  United  States;  but  some  things 
should  not  be  passed  in  silence  here.  The  contest  between  him 
and  the  present  Senator  had  been  bitter  and  personal.  He  had 
triumphed.  He  had  been  wonderfully  sustained  by  his  friends, 
and  stood  confessedly  "the  first  in  honor  and  the  first  in  place." 
He  yielded  to  an  appeal  made  to  his  magnanimity  by  his  foe. 
If  he  judged  unwisely,  he  has  paid  the  forfeit  well.  Never  in 
the  history  of  political  warfare  has  any  public  man  been  so 
pursued;  never  has  malignity  so  exhausted  itself. 

Fellow-citizens!  the  man  whose  body  lies  before  you  was  your 
Senator.  From  the  moment  of  his  election  his  character  has 
been  maligned,  his  motives  attacked,  his  courage  impeached, 
his  patriotism  assailed.  It  has  been  a  system  tending  to  one 

[247] 


Appendix 


end:  and  the  end  is  here.  What  was  his  crime?  Review  his 
history  —  consider  his  public  acts  —  weigh  his  private  character 
—  and  before  the  grave  encloses  him  forever,  judge  between  him 
and  his  enemies! 

As  a  man  —  to  be  judged  in  his  private  relations  —  who  was 
his  superior?  It  was  his  boast,  and  amid  the  general  license  of 
a  new  country,  it  was  a  proud  one,  that  his  most  scrutinizing 
enemy  could  fix  no  single  act  of  immorality  upon  him!  Tem- 
perate, decorous,  self -res  trained,  he  had  passed  through  all  the 
excitements  of  California  unstained.  No  man  could  charge 
him  with  broken  faith  or  violated  trust;  of  habits  simple  and 
inexpensive,  he  had  no  lust  of  gain.  He  overreached  no  man's 
weakness  in  a  bargain,  and  withheld  from  no  man  his  just  dues. 
Never,  in  the  history  of  the  state,  has  there  been  a  citizen 
who  has  borne  public  relations  more  stainless  in  all  respects 
than  he. 

But  it  is  not  by  this  standard  he  is  to  be  judged.  He  was  a 
public  man,  and  his  memory  demands  a  public  judgment.  What 
was  his  public  crime?  The  answer  is  in  his  own  words:  "I  die 
because  I  was  opposed  to  a  corrupt  administration  and  the  exten- 
sion of  slavery."  Fellow-citizens,  they  are  remarkable  words, 
uttered  at  a  very  remarkable  moment:  they  involve  the  history 
of  his  Senatorial  career,  and  of  its  sad  and  bloody  termination. 

When  Mr.  Broderick  entered  the  Senate,  he  had  been  elected 
at  the  beginning  of  a  Presidential  term  as  the  friend  of  the  Presi- 
dent elect,  having  undoubtedly  been  one  of  his  most  influential 
supporters.  There  were  unquestionably  some  things  in  the 
exercise  of  the  appointing  power  which  he  could  have  wished 
otherwise;  but  he  had  every  reason  to  remain  with  the  Admin- 
istration, which  could  be  supposed  to  weigh  with  a  man  in  his 
position.  He  had  heartily  maintained  the  doctrine  of  Popular 
Sovereignty,  as  set  forth  in  the  Cincinnati  Platform,  and  he 
never  wavered  in  his  support  till  the  day  of  his  death.  But 
when  in  his  judgment  the  President  betrayed  his  obligations  to 
his  party  and  country  —  when,  in  the  whole  series  of  acts  in 
relation  to  Kansas,  he  proved  recreant  to  his  pledges  and  in- 
structions—  when  the  whole  power  of  the  Administration  was 

[248] 


Appendix 


brought  to  bear  upon  the  legislative  branch  of  the  Government, 
in  order  to  force  slavery  upon  an  unwilling  people  —  then,  in 
the  high  performance  of  his  duty  as  a  Senator,  he  rebuked  the 
Administration  by  his  voice  and  his  vote,  and  stood  by  his  princi- 
ples. It  is  true,  he  adopted  no  half-way  measures.  He  threw 
the  whole  weight  of  his  character  into  the  ranks  of  the  Opposition. 
He  endeavored  to  arouse  the  people  to  an  indignant  sense  of  the 
iniquitous  tyranny  of  federal  power,  and,  kindling  with  the  con- 
test, became  its  fiercest  and  firmest  opponent.  Fellow-citizens, 
whatever  may  have  been  your  political  predilections,  it  is  im- 
possible to  repress  your  admiration,  as  you  review  the  conduct 
of  the  man  who  lies  hushed  in  death  before  you.  You  read  in 
his  history  a  glorious  imitation  of  the  great  popular  leaders  who 
have  opposed  the  despotic  influences  of  power  in  other  lands 
and  in  our  own.  When  John  Hampden  died  on  Chalgrove  field, 
he  sealed  his  devotion  to  popular  liberty  with  his  blood.  The 
eloquence  of  Fox  found  the  sources  of  its  inspiration  in  his 
love  for  the  people.  When  Senators  conspired  against  Tiberius 
Gracchus,  and  the  Tribune  of  the  people  fell  beneath  their  dag- 
gers, it  was  power  that  prompted  the  crime  and  demanded  the 
sacrifice.  Who  can  doubt,  if  your  Senator  had  surrendered  his 
free  thought,  and  bent  in  submission  to  the  rule  of  the  Adminis- 
tration—  who  can  doubt  that  instead  of  resting  on  a  bloody 
bier,  he  would  have  this  day  been  reposing  in  the  inglorious 
felicitude  of  Presidential  sunshine? 

Fellow-citizens,  let  no  man  suppose  that  the  death  of  the  emi- 
nent citizen  of  whom  I  speak  was  caused  by  any  other  reason 
than  that  to  which  his  own  words  assign  it.  It  has  been  long 
foreshadowed  —  it  was  predicted  by  his  friends  —  it  was  threat- 
ened by  his  enemies:  it  was  the  consequence  of  intense  political 
hatred.  His  death  was  a  political  necessity,  poorly  veiled 
beneath  the  guise  of  a  private  quarrel.  Here,  in  his  own  state, 
among  those  who  witnessed  the  late  canvass,  who  know  the 
contending  leaders,  among  those  who  knew  the  antagonists  on 
the  bloody  ground  —  here,  the  public  conviction  is  so  thoroughly 
settled,  that  nothing  need  be  said.  Tested  by  the  correspondence 
itself,  there  was  no  cause,  in  morals,  in  honor,  in  taste,  by  any 

[249] 


Appendix 

code,  by  the  custom  of  any  civilized  land,  there  was  no  cause  for 
blood.  Let  me  repeat  the  story  —  it  is  as  brief  as  it  is  fatal: 
A  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  descends  into  a  political  conven- 
tion —  it  is  just,  however,  to  say  that  the  occasion  was  to  return 
thanks  to  his  friends  for  an  unsuccessful  support.  In  a  speech 
bitter  and  personal  he  stigmatized  Senator  Broderick  and  all  his 
friends  in  words  of  contemptuous  insult.  When  Mr.  Broderick 
saw  that  speech,  he  retorted,  saying  in  substance,  that  he  had 
heretofore  spoken  of  Judge  Terry  as  an  honest  man,  but  that  he 
now  took  it  back.  When  inquired  of,  he  admitted  that  he  had 
so  said,  and  connected  his  words  with  Judge  Terry's  speech  as 
prompting  them.  So  far  as  Judge  Terry  personally  was  con- 
cerned, this  was  the  cause  of  mortal  combat;  there  was  no  other. 

In  the  contest  which  has  just  terminated  in  the  state,  Mr. 
Broderick  had  taken  a  leading  part;  he  had  been  engaged  in 
controversies  very  personal  in  their  nature,  because  the  subjects 
of  public  discussion  had  involved  the  character  and  conduct  of 
many  public  and  distinguished  men.  But  Judge  Terry  was  not 
one  of  these.  He  was  no  contestant;  his  conduct  was  not  in 
issue;  he  had  been  mentioned  but  once  incidentally  —  in  reply 
to  his  own  attack  —  and,  except  as  it  might  be  found  in  his 
peculiar  traits  or  peculiar  fitness,  there  was  no  reason  to  suppose 
that  he  could  seek  any  man's  blood.  When  William  of  Nassau, 
the  deliverer  of  Holland,  died  in  the  presence  of  his  wife  and 
children,  the  hand  that  struck  the  blow  was  not  nerved  by 
private  vengeance.  When  the  fourth  Henry  passed  unharmed 
amid  the  dangers  of  the  field  of  Ivry,  to  perish  in  the  streets  of 
his  capital  by  the  hand  of  a  fanatic,  he  did  not  seek  to  avenge  a 
private  grief.  An  exaggerated  sense  of  personal  honor  —  a  weak 
mind  with  choleric  passions,  intense  sectional  prejudice  united 
with  great  confidence  in  the  use  of  arms  —  these  sometimes  serve 
to  stimulate  the  instruments  which  accomplish  the  deepest  and 
deadliest  purpose. 

Fellow-citizens!  One  year  ago  today  I  performed  a  duty, 
such  as  I  perform  today,  over  the  remains  of  Senator  Ferguson, 
who  died  as  Broderick  died,  tangled  in  the  meshes  of  the  code 
of  honor.  Today  there  is  another  and  more  eminent  sacrifice. 

[250] 


Appendix 

Today  I  renew  my  protest;  today  I  utter  yours.  The  code  of 
honor  is  a  delusion  and  a  snare;  it  palters  with  the  hope  of  a  true 
courage  and  binds  it  at  the  feet  of  crafty  and  cruel  skill.  It 
surrounds  its  victim  with  the  pomp  and  grace  of  the  procession, 
but  leaves  him  bleeding  on  the  altar.  It  substitutes  cold  and 
deliberate  preparation  for  courageous  and  manly  impulse,  and 
arms  the  one  to  disarm  the  other;  it  may  prevent  fraud  between 
practised  duelists  who  should  be  forever  without  its  pale,  but  it 
makes  the  mere  "trick  of  the  weapon"  superior  to  the  noblest 
cause  and  the  truest  courage.  Its  pretence  of  equality  is  a  lie  — 
it  is  equal  in  all  the  form,  it  is  unjust  in  all  the  substance  —  the 
habitude  of  arms,  the  early  training,  the  frontier  life,  the  border 
war,  the  sectional  custom,  the  life  of  leisure,  all  these  are  advan- 
tages which  no  negotiation  can  neutralize,  and  which  no  courage 
can  overcome. 

But,  fellow-citizens,  the  protest  is  not  only  spoken,  in  your 
words  and  in  mine  —  it  is  written  in  indelible  characters;  it  is 
written  in  the  blood  of  Gilbert,  in  the  blood  of  Ferguson,  in 
the  blood  of  Broderick;  and  the  inscription  will  not  altogether 
fade. 

With  the  administration  of  the  code  in  this  particular  case,  I 
am  not  here  to  deal.  Amid  passionate  grief,  let  us  strive  to  be 
just.  I  give  no  currency  to  rumors  of  which  personally  I  know 
nothing;  there  are  other  tribunals  to  which  they  may  well  be 
referred,  and  this  is  not  one  of  them.  But  I  am  here  to  say,  that 
whatever  in  the  code  of  honor  or  out  of  it  demands  or  allows  a 
deadly  combat  where  there  is  not  in  all  things  entire  and  certain 
equality,  is  a  prostitution  of  the  name,  is  an  evasion  of  the  sub- 
stance, and  is  a  shield,  emblazoned  with  the  name  of  Chivalry, 
to  cover  the  malignity  of  murder. 

And  now,  as  the  shadows  turn  towards  the  East,  and  we 
prepare  to  bear  these  poor  remains  to  their  silent  resting-place, 
let  us  not  seek  to  repress  the  generous  pride  which  prompts  a 
recital  of  noble  deeds  and  manly  virtues.  He  rose  unaided  and 
alone;  he  began  his  career  without  family  or  fortune,  in  the  face 
of  difficulties;  he  inherited  poverty  and  obscurity:  he  died  a 
Senator  in  Congress,  having  written  his  name  in  the  history  of 

[251] 


Appendix 

the  great  struggle  for  the  rights  of  the  people  against  the  despot- 
ism of  organization  and  the  corruption  of  power.  He  leaves  in 
the  hearts  of  his  friends  the  tenderest  and  the  proudest  recol- 
lections. He  was  honest,  faithful,  earnest,  sincere,  generous 
and  brave;  he  felt  in  all  the  great  crises  of  his  life  that  he  was 
a  leader  in  the  ranks;  that  it  was  his  high  duty  to  uphold  the 
interests  of  the  masses;  that  he  could  not  falter.  When  he  re- 
turned from  that  fatal  field,  while  the  dark  wing  of  the  Arch- 
angel of  Death  was  casting  its  shadows  upon  his  brow,  his  greatest 
anxiety  was  as  to  the  performance  of  his  duty.  He  felt  that  all 
his  strength  and  all  his  life  belonged  to  the  cause  to  which  he 
had  devoted  them.  "Baker,"  said  he  —  and  to  me  they  were 
his  last  words  —  "  Baker,  when  I  was  struck  I  tried  to  stand 
firm,  but  the  blow  blinded  me,  and  I  could  not."  I  trust  it  is 
no  shame  to  my  manhood  that  tears  blinded  me  as  he  said  it. 
Of  his  last  hour  I  have  no  heart  to  speak.  He  was  the  last  of 
his  race;  there  was  no  kindred  hand  to  smooth  his  couch  or  wipe 
the  death  damp  from  his  brow;  but  around  that  dying  bed  strong 
men,  the  friends  of  early  manhood,  the  devoted  adherents  of 
later  life,  bowed  in  irrepressible  grief,  "and  lifted  up  their  voices 
and  wept." 

But,  fellow-citizens,  the  voice  of  lamentation  is  not  uttered 
by  private  friendship  alone  —  the  blow  that  struck  his  manly 
breast  has  touched  the  heart  of  a  people,  and  as  the  sad  tidings 
spread,  a  general  gloom  prevails.  Who  now  shall  speak  for 
California?  —  who  be  the  interpreter  of  the  wants  of  the  Pacific 
coast?  Who  can  appeal  to  the  communities  of  the  Atlantic  who 
love  free  labor?  Who  can  speak  for  masses  of  men  with  a  passion- 
ate love  for  the  classes  from  whence  he  sprung?  Who  can  defy 
the  blandishments  of  power,  the  insolence  of  office,  the  corruption 
of  administrations?  What  hopes  are  buried  with  him  in  the 
grave! 

"Ah!  who  that  gallant  spirit  shall  resume, 
Leap  from  Eurotas'  bank,  and  call  us  from  the  tomb?" 

But  the  last  word  must  be  spoken,  and  the  imperious  mandate 
of  Death  must  be  fulfilled.  Thus,  O  brave  heart!  we  bear  thee 

[252] 


Appendix 

to  thy  rest.  Thus,  surrounded  by  tens  of  thousands,  we  leave 
thee  to  the  equal  grave.  As  in  life  no  other  voice  among  us  so 
rung  its  trumpet  blast  upon  the  ear  of  freemen,  so  in  death  its 
echoes  will  reverberate  amid  our  mountains  and  valleys,  until 
truth  and  valor  cease  to  appeal  to  the  human  heart. 
Good  friend!  true  hero!  hail  and  farewell. 


[253] 


INDEX 

PAGES 

ASHE,  R.  P.,  his  evidence  in  the  Terry  trial 136-137 

BAKER,  E.  D.,  defends  Cora,  1856 109-110 

Leads  Republicans  in  California 237-238 

Speech  over  Broderick 239 

BALLOT  Box  FRAUDS 139 

BENHAM,  CALHOTJN,  mention  of  87,  225 

BIGLER,  Gov.  JOHN,  concedes  patronage  to  Broderick 72 

Mention  of 85 

BRODERICK,  DAVID  COLBERT,  anecdotes  of  86,  87 

Attitude  of  the  press  on  his  refusal  to  accept  the  chal- 
lenge of  Terry   209 

Attitude  towards  Kansas  and  Slavery  questions 172 

Challenge  of  Terry  208 

Change  in  politics  towards  the  close  of  his  career 197 

Character  of  his  supporters 81 

Chosen  United  States  Senator,  1857  152 

Contest  for  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 145-152 

Death  of 229 

Duel  with  J.  Caleb  Smith 56 

Duel  with  David  S.  Terry,  see  Broderick-Terry  duel. 

Early  history  of 3-14 

Elected  Senator  to  California  Legislature 51 

Encounter  with  Moore 52 

Encounter  with  Peyton  86 

Entertained  at  Salt  Lake  City  189 

Establishes  a  private  mint  in  San  Francisco    50-51 

Friendship  for  Stephen  J.  Field   58-59 

Funeral  ceremonies 230-231 

In  Washington     160-164,  169-185 

Influence  with  the  Democratic  party 70-74 

[255] 


Index 

BBODERICK  (Continued)  PAGES 

Leaves  Washington    197 

Makes  a  canvass  of  California   199-200 

Mysteriously  assaulted  in  New  York    197 

Personal  bravery 84 

Personal  description 13,  70 

Relations  with  William  M.  Gwin   88-89,  200-203 

Relations  with  George  Wilkes 143-144 

Removed  from  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands 190 

Replies  to  Terry's  letter  of  September  8,  1859 212 

Secures  settlement  of  Fremont's  claims 185 

Speech  on  Slavery 173-178 

Speeches  written  by  George  Wilkes  denied 180 

Supports  Terry  during  the  trial  of  the  latter  by  the 

Vigilance  Committee 142 

Voyage  of,  to  California 8-14 

BRODERICK-TERRY  duel 218-228 

Articles  of  engagement 215 

Description  of  weapons  used  in    218-221 

Immediate  origin  of 206-208 

Scene  on  the  field  of 222-228 

BROOKS,  SAMUEL  H.,  present  at  the  Broderick-Terry  duel. .  224 

BULLETIN,  see  Evening  Bulletin. 

BUCARELI,  Viceroy,  sends  vessel  to  California 23 

CALIFORNIA,  admitted  to  the  Union 42 

Constitution  of  1849 41 

Constitutional  delegation 41 

Early  history  of 14-28 

Early  lynch  law  in   36 

Election  of  1853 74 

Indians 24 

Immigration 31 

Latin  population  of 28 

Life  in  1849.     Society,  manners  and  customs 38-40 

Missions 21 

of,  described 63-68 

[256] 


Index 

CALIFORNIA  (Continued)  PAGES 

Senatorial  vote,  1857 152 

State  Democratic  Convention  of  1854,  remarkable  pro- 
ceedings of 83-86 

CASEY,  JAMES  P.,  assassinates  James  King  of  William  .  115-119 

COLEMAN,  WILLIAM  T.,  mention  of   121 

COLTON,  DAVID,  mention  of 221 

CORA,  CHARLES,  assassinates  Richardson 109 

CORRESPONDENCE  leading  to  the  Broderick-Terry  duel.  .211-214 

CRIME  in  California,  see  Punishment. 

CUSTOM  HOUSE  of  San  Francisco 92 

DAGGETT,  JOHN,  statement  of 219-220 

DONNER  party    31 

DOUGLAS,  STEPHEN  M 171 

DRAKE,  SIR  FRANCIS,  mention  of 16 

EARLY  party  politics  in  California,  see  Party  Politics. 
EASTERN  opinions  regarding  crime  in  California  in  1856. 111-112 

ELECTION  of  1856 145 

EVENING  Bulletin  of  San  Francisco  established  by  James 

King  of  William 114 

Statement  in,  regarding  James  P.  Casey 115 

FERGUSON,  W.  A.,  fatal  duel  with  Geo.  Pen  Johnston  . .  187-189 
FIELD,  STEPHEN  J.,  becomes  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court 

of  California,  1858 165 

His  encounter  with  B.  F.   Moore  averted  by  Brod- 

erick 58-61 

FREMONT,  JOHN  C.,   military   journey   from   Monterey   to 

Los  Angeles 29 

United  States  Senator,  1849 41 

GAMBLING  in  California 105 

GOLD  discovered  in  California 31 

GREWELL,  JACOB,  Senator  from  Santa  Clara,  defeats  Brod- 

erick's  political  plans     77-80 

[257] 


Index 

PAGES 

GWIN,  WILLIAM  M.,  arrival  in  California 90 

Duel  with  J.  W.  McCorkle 92 

Famous  letter  to  Broderick 157-158,  187-189,  201 

Member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  in  1849 91 

Personal  appearance  and  history 91 

Political  antagonist  of  Broderick 88-89,  201,  203 

HASKELL,   LEONIDAS,   friend  in  whose  house   Broderick's 

death  occurred 228 

HERALD,  see  San  Francisco  Herald. 

HOPKINS,  S.  A.,  stabbed  by  David  S.  Terry   133 

INDIANS,  see  California. 

KING  of  William,  JAMES,  death  of 120 

Personal  history  of 113-114 

LATHAM,  MILTON  S.,  mention  of   96 

"LAW  AND  ORDER"  Party  132,  138 

McCoRKLE,  J.  W.,  duel  with  William  M.  Gwin 92 

McDouGALL,  JOHN,  chairman  of  State  Democratic  Con- 
vention of  1854 83 

Favorable  to  the  Vigilance  Committee  of  1851 102-103 

McGowAN,  EDWARD,  evades  the  Vigilance  Committee. .  130-131 

Mention  of 83 

McKiBBEN,  J.  C.,  mention  of 221 

MOORE,  B.  F.,  antagonistic  to  Broderick 52-53 

Attitude  towards  Field 58-59 

MOORE,  ELLIOTT,  J.,  mention  of   224 

PARTY  politics  in  California 93-96 

PERLEY,  D.  W.,  mention  of 208 

PEYTON,  BALIE,  encounter  with  Broderick 86 

PORTOLA,  GASPAR  DE 20 

PUNISHMENT  of  crime  in  California,  statistics  of 112 

RICHARDSON,  W.  H.,  assassinated  by  Charles  Cora 109 

[258] 


Index 

PAGES 

SAN    FRANCISCO    Custom    House    called    "Virginia    Poor 

House" 92 

Herald,  Anti-Vigilante 126-127 

Vigilance  Committee,  see  Vigilance  Committee. 

SERRA,  JUNIPERO,  in  California 19-20,  22 

SHERMAN,  WILLIAM  T.,  mention  of 125 

SICKLES,  DANIEL  E.,  recollections  of  Broderick 8 

SMITH,  J.  CALEB,  duel  with  Broderick 56 

STEVENSON'S  regiment 31 

SUTTER,  JOHN  A.,  mention  of 43 

SUITER'S  FORT,  description  of   43-44 

TERRY,  DAVID  S.,  attempts  the  murder  of  Hopkins 133-135 

Arrested  by  the  Vigilance  Committee 134 

Duel  with  Broderick 218-228 

Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California 96 

Letter  to  Broderick,  September  8,  1859 211 

Mention  of 84 

Personal  history  of 204-206 

Resigns  from  the  Supreme  Court  of  California 210 

Speech  before  the  Lecompton  Convention 206 

Statement  to  the  Vigilance  Committee 135-136 

Trial  by  the  Vigilance  Committee,  verdict  and  judg- 
ment   136-137 

TILFORD,  FRANK,  Broderick's  chief  political  supporter 150 

VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  of  1851,  actions  of 102 

Causes  of  organization  of 97-99 

Declaration  of 100 

Justification  of 107 

VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  of  1856,  actions  of 118-140 

Disbands 140 

Justification  of 127 

"VIRGINIA  POOR  HOUSE,"  see  San  Francisco  Custom  House. 

WALKER,  WILLIAM,  filibuster,  friend  of  Broderick   80 

WELLER,  JOHN  B.,  chosen  to  succeed  Fremont  in  1851  ...  55,  91 
WILKES,  GEORGE,  relations  with  Broderick 143-144 

[259] 


THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA,  SANTA  CRUZ 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  DATE  stamped  below. 


50m-12,'70(Pl251s8)2373-3A,l 


2106  00060  1069 


